Beautiful Dreamer
by Nessarie
Summary: Breaking Dawn: Edward's point of view from the moment he first hears Renesmee's thoughts to the moment when Bella awakes as a new vampire. *Repost and Continuation.*
1. Chapter One: Voices

**A/N:**

 ** _To My New Readers:_** This is a repost and finishing of one of my existing stories, which I had taken down a few years ago. I have decided to repost it and finish the tale, as it was originally a short story, anyway (one I really enjoyed, as well). The first four chapters were written quite some time ago, and I have since received a BFA in Creative Writing, so I hope you'll be able to spot the improvement in my writing starting in the fifth chapter.

 ** _To My Long Time Readers:_** Hi! So, um… yeah, I'm not dead! Woohoo! As I said above, I went to college, and have received a BFA in Creative Writing; in the meantime, I did not write much fan fiction at all, not for the lack of desire to do so, but simply because I had no time! I was also in the process of writing my own novel(s), of which I have completed two and am currently in the process of self-publication.

 _This chapter was originally written in 2010._

 **Beautiful Dreamer**

I let out a barely audible sigh as I heard his thoughts. He thought I was humoring Bella, just keeping her happy until she…

I cut the thought off, wishing I could block his just as easily, as I sat down on the floor by Bella's head as she relaxed on the couch behind me. Automatically, she reached over her fragile hand – the one that wasn't clutching desperately to the cup of human blood – and gently threaded her fingers through my hair, tugging lightly in the way she knew I loved.

Any other time, I would have closed my eyes and leaned back into her, giving her more access to my hair, but I didn't now. I was stressed and stiff and scared and just _miserable_.

And it wasn't fair – not to either of us.

I should never have agreed to make love with her before she was turned. I _knew_ something would go wrong; I _knew_ it was all too good to be true. When had Bella and I ever had true peace? We should have known better than to think we would get our happily ever after.

I was nothing but a soulless monster – I didn't deserve happiness.

I heard Bella sigh just as quietly as I had, slowly pulling her fingers out of my hair, a small whimper escaping her throat when she realized that she wasn't going to get the response that she desired from me.

 _I'm sorry_ , I thought at the same time that she whispered the exact sentiment to me. Swallowing the lump in my throat, I quickly reached back and grasped her retreating hand, giving it a light squeeze before bringing our entwined hands forward to rest on my shoulder. She relaxed slightly at my show of affection and squeezed my hand back.

And the worst part? I mused as I barely took in the sounds of the soft conversation between my father and Jacob in the background. The worst part was that I couldn't even properly hate the thing that was killing her. It wasn't the creature's fault, in all honestly – it was mine. _I_ had created it, after all; _it_ didn't have a choice in the matter, and it certainly had no idea what it was doing to its mother.

And how could I really hate something that Bella loved so much? And it wasn't just a part of me, but a part of _her_ as well. I think she was under the impression that it was easy for me to decide the creature needed to be destroyed, but it wasn't. It was the hardest decision I had ever had to come to.

In the few brief minutes of stunned discovery back on the bedroom floor of Isle Esme, I had experienced every positive emotion under the sun – joy, fascination, amazement, excitement, and so many more that it now hurt to dwell on.

And then my phone had started to ring. I had been so wrapped up in what was happening and what I was feeling, that I had sat there frozen, my mind barely registering the annoying and insistent sound of my ringtone ( _I'm too Sexy_ – a joke by Emmett, no doubt, that I had been too lazy to correct while enjoying the pleasantries of newlywed life), and when I had finally registered that Bella had moved to sit in front of me and was searching for my phone in my pants pocket, I was confused. I wanted to tell her to just let it ring – whoever was calling would leave a message, and we would get back to them after we celebrated a bit. But I couldn't get my mouth, or limbs, or anything but my brain to really function right. When she finally flipped the phone open and pressed it to her ear, I wanted to grab it from her and throw it across the room, pick her up and lay her down on the bed – _what in the world was she doing kneeling on the floor in her condition anyway?_ – and make sweet love to her until both of us were so exhausted that we couldn't move anymore (well, on her part anyway – because I was always ready to go).

And then Bella was saying that she had felt something move, and my eyes had automatically snapped to her stomach; it was round where it hadn't been round the day before, and I realized with a jolt that even if she had conceived on our wedding night – which, looking back at her mood swings, fatigue, and appetite since then, I was fairly certain that she had – her body should not be experiencing symptoms of a pregnancy yet, let alone _growing_ and feeling movement from within.

When she had passed the phone to me, the first things Carlisle had started spouting off were concerns, worries, and horror stories of the _Cambion_. He had been certain that the pregnancy would not bode well for Bella, and despite his personal beliefs, had thought that termination would be for the best. I knew then that Bella was in very serious danger, if my father was ready to advise such drastic measures.

I had wanted to scream and yell and protest and do _anything_ that would prove him wrong, but I knew it was futile. I agreed to take us home, and in the meantime, I watched Bella's health deteriorate quickly – she couldn't keep anything down, and she was getting paler by the minute; I knew there was no hope. The pregnancy would have to be terminated – Bella wouldn't be able to survive it, and _I_ wouldn't be able to survive without Bella.

I never expected Bella to fight me on the matter though. Of all the times for her to develop a maternal instinct…

I brought myself back to the present as I felt Bella tense again behind me. I immediately looked back to see what the problem was, but her eyes were on Rosalie who was hissing at Carlisle and fuming all kinds of obscenities at him in her head.

 _Bitch_ , I thought, my fury and hatred of her immediately being brought to the forefront of my mind again.

"You should hunt," Carlisle said to her gently, ignoring her utter rudeness. _She must be parched – I know I am_. Carlisle thought.

 _Oh, Carlisle_ , I sighed in my head, my black eyes quickly glancing back at Bella, who was still watching my volatile sister. _You know nothing of parched_.

"I'll hunt when _he_ does," she growled, jerking her head in my direction, and I suppressed the snarl building in my chest and the urge to rip her head from her shoulders. I could do it too, I just needed to be wary of Emmett afterward.

Carlisle sighed, reluctantly letting Rosalie have her way – _as usual_ – and a few minutes later, he, Esme, Alice, Jasper, and Emmett were gone, off to have a much needed hunt, and they would probably be gone for a good few hours.

 _Wonderful_ , I thought sarcastically, as I realized that our only company was Rosalie and Jacob. _Just perfect_.

And, of course, they were already bickering not five minutes after everyone had left, Jacob bouncing his bad jokes off of Rosalie and she, in turn, threatening homicide.

I wanted to kill them both.

"Enough, Jacob," Bella finally said, her voice weak and slightly pleading.

"You want me to take off?" he asked in a voice that was part defeat, part hope, and part dread; I didn't understand him at all.

"No! Of course not!" Bella replied, almost instantly, her voice astonished and, underneath of all of that, guilty. Jacob didn't hear it, but I did. Even worse than _me_ not understanding Jacob, or Bella's undying need for him, was Bella's confusion on the very same matter. I knew she loved me, and I knew she loved him – but the two loves were very different. She'd chosen me, not him, and I knew it confused her to feel so needy for him when she knew that _I_ was the one she couldn't live without.

"You look tired," Bella commented to him after a tense moment of silence, and he sent a weak half-grin back to her.

"Dead beat," he said, slumping deeper into the chair he was in – which I'm sure would from now be _his_ chair, seeing as we would absolutely _never_ get the smell out.

" _I'd_ like to beat you dead," Rosalie grumbled under her breath, so low that only Jacob and I heard. Bella remained oblivious as she sipped up the last drops of blood from her cup and unconsciously massaged my shoulder with her free hand while I kept my own hand resting atop hers.

There was _one_ good thing about having Jacob around – he was hell bent on annoying Rosalie until she either snapped or learned to ignore him, and I was all for anything that annoyed my vicious sister at the moment.

Oh, she _pretended_ to be helping Bella; she _pretended_ that she cared about Bella's well-being, and she _pretended_ that she was doing this for Bella's happiness, but in the brief moments that she left her thoughts unguarded, I saw the truth.

Rosalie wasn't necessarily hoping that Bella would die, but she wasn't going out of her way to hope for a better outcome. Whenever she slipped up with her thoughts, I could see that she was already mentally referring to the thing growing inside of Bella as "hers;" I'd caught a few of her unchecked daydreams, where an unknown, little voice was calling Rosalie "Mommy."

I hated her.

"Rose?" Bella asked hesitantly, and my sister chuckled, quickly standing up and rushing to Bella's side to take the empty cup from her. I bit my lip to keep in a snarl as Rosalie briefly passed within my biting range, but then she was gone, in the kitchen, getting some more blood for Bella.

I sighed and let my gaze drift back to my wife, taking in the tender look on her face. I would be lying if I didn't say that the pregnancy had given her a certain glow that I had only seen in expectant mothers before – it was beautiful, and if I weren't so distraught over the devastation of the circumstances, I would be relishing in all of this, like the way I was supposed to be.

 _Mmmm…_

I blinked, glancing toward Jacob for a moment, but I was sure the thought hadn't come from him – I knew the tenor of his mind, and this was completely different. I took a moment to concentrate on Rosalie, in the kitchen, but her thoughts were only bitter and grouchy as she thought of different ways to murder Jacob.

 _Warmmm…_

Okay, I was definitely not imagining things. I glanced back toward Bella, suddenly hit with an unexpected idea. No… after all this time?

"Did you say something?" I asked her, and automatically she and Jacob both looked at me in confusion.

"Me?" she asked, and I nodded, turning my body to face her. "I didn't say anything."

 _What…? But she_ had _to have…_ I sat up on my knees, gazing down at her in rapt attention while she looked up at me in confusion. _It can't be… not after all this time…_ _why would I hear her thoughts_ now?

 _Oooh, pretty…_

"What are you thinking about right now?"

"Nothing," she said, not comprehending. I could briefly register that Jacob was questioning my sanity and wondering whether the stress had finally gotten to me. "What's going on?"

"What were you thinking about a minute ago?" I pressed on, desperate to know where these new thoughts were coming from. They _had_ to be from Bella – I could hear everyone else perfectly.

"Just…" she trailed off, blushing furiously. "Esme's island. And feathers."

I frowned, slightly disappointed. The thoughts that I was hearing didn't match the tenor of what Bella had admitted to thinking. If anything, Bella's thoughts would have been lustful, but the thoughts that I was hearing definitely weren't. They sounded oddly familiar, though, and I couldn't help but feel like I was missing something.

 _Warmmm… Mmmoma…_

"Say something else," I whispered, my insides freezing and melting all in a matter of seconds as the realization hit me. _It_ can't _be, but… it is_.

"Like what?" Bella replied, her voice frustrated as she tried to figure out what was going through my head. _Ah, the feeling is mutual, my love_. "Edward, what's going on?"

 _Mmmoma…pretty sssound…_

My unneeded breath caught in my chest, my body moving without my permission. Before I realized what was happening, both of my hands were gently cradling my wife's very pregnant tummy, which was something I hadn't allowed myself to do before – I had been too afraid that it would make the situation all too real. Which it did – just not in the way that I had expected.

As soon as my hands came in contact with her belly, the being inside shifted a little bit, a little foot or hand brushing gently against one of my hands.

Suddenly, with just that single movement, that simple, barely there touch, I was completely in tune with this new, budding mind – and it was completely astonishing. Where I could pinpoint and hear every thought of every member of my family and anyone else – save Bella, of course – with the slightest of ease, I could also put them into the background and easily not pay attention to them; they were just quiet murmurings that blended into the constant flow.

 _These_ thoughts, however, were like they were shouting at me, the clearest, most _in tune_ thoughts that I had ever heard. It was like my mind was already hard-wired to be able to find and make out these thoughts no matter what the circumstances; I was sure that even if the room was crowded with hundreds of people and thoughts, I would be able to immediately – and without even trying – hone in on these thoughts.

There were no longer just half-formed, sleepy words, but images and sounds too. It was dark and murky, though there was a very, _very_ dim pink-red-ish light that gave a slight glow, though the dark shapes were murky. I could barely make out the blurry shadow of a tiny hand pressing against the silhouette of a much larger one that was blocking out a space of the pink-red light.

There was also a comforting _whoosh-whoosh-woosh_ sound, which I immediately recognized as Bella's heartbeat, though I was hearing it differently now, the sound coming from someone else's perspective. The sound was soothing and beautiful, but oddly distorted, as if I were hearing it through water… or amniotic fluid, as the case may be.

 _Get your hands off of my baby!_ Rosalie's shocked and furious thoughts flew in and out of my head within seconds, and I curled myself the slightest bit closer to Bella, my body moving to cover hers protectively, though I made no outward expression or comment to my sister's thoughts. I would definitely deal with her later though, but for now…

"The f—" No, I couldn't call it that anymore, it wasn't like that. It wasn't what we had feared that it would be – it wasn't a Cambion, it wasn't a monster! _I_ wasn't a monster. It was just a child – an innocent, little child who was still learning… "It…" I shook my head, dejecting the horrid term. A child, a _baby_ , not an _it_. "The baby likes the sound of your voice."

My statement was met with utter and complete silence, save for the budding thoughts that I now knew were coming from the child in my wife's womb. I thought to myself _My child – our child; dear Lord, she had been right this whole time, and I…_

"Holy crow, you can hear him!" Bella suddenly shouted in excited astonishment.

The baby jumped, startled by the sudden loudness, and automatically kicked outward. Bella gasped, wincing against the sudden pain at the same time that I reached up to gently rub the sore spot, my voice automatically turning gentle as I tried to soothe them both.

"Shh," I murmured quietly, shocking myself with the tenderness in my voice. It seemed so natural to me. "You startled it… him." _That's going to take a little practice_.

"Oh…" Bella gasped quietly, gently patting the side of her swollen belly, smiling a little when the baby shifted softly beneath our hands. "Sorry, baby."

 _Mmmoma…mmm…_

I tilted my head closer toward my wife's tummy, though I didn't necessarily _need_ to do so in order to hear the baby's budding thoughts, but I wanted to be closer, still marveling over everything that was happening. _Oh, I'm sorry – I'm so sorry for every doubt I had. I'm sorry._ Everything was suddenly becoming extremely sharp – I now understood exactly why Bella was so ready to give her life up to make sure this child lived.

Because, I knew that if it were me, I would make the same decision – my life was nothing compared to that of my child's.

 _How_ could I have ever been so stupid? So _selfish_? I should have followed my initial instincts – Bella had been right all along; this was dangerous, yes, but _so_ worth it, and if we were proactive… there was no reason that both Bella _and_ the baby couldn't come out of this healthy and happy.

 _I'm going to have a family… my own,_ real _family._

"What's he thinking now?" Bella demanded excitedly, moving one of her hands to cover mine, which was still resting on the top peak of her belly. Together, we gently rubbed small circles on her soft flesh.

"It…" _Not an_ it _, Edward_ , I chastised myself. _This is your_ child. "He or she, is…" I trailed off, my heart soaring in astonishment as I realized what I was hearing.

 _Mmm… warmmm… pretty sssounds… happy… Mmmoma…_

"He's _happy_ ," I gasped, completely astounded that this small being could contain so much emotion – so much _joy_.

Bella's breath caught, and her beautiful eyes welled up with shimmering tears, the complete and utter adoration in her expression causing my heart to swell with more love than I could possibly imagine. Not for the first time, I wished that I could cry with her, though these tears wouldn't be born from sadness, but unconditional joy and love.

"Of course, you're happy, pretty baby, of course you are," Bella cooed, both of us gently rubbing her tummy while joyful tears cascaded down her cheeks. "How could you not be, all safe and warm and loved? I love you so much, little EJ, of course you're happy."

 _EJ_? Surely she couldn't possibly mean what I thought she meant.

"What did you call him?" I asked, trying to keep the tone of my voice toned down to an innocent curiosity. I was absolutely positive that I knew what the _E_ stood for, and I was seriously praying that the _J_ stood for _Junior_ , though I couldn't help but feel as if my praying would be for naught.

Bella blushed, dropping her eyes down to watch our hands rubbing her tummy instead of looking me in the eyes. "I sort of named him. I didn't think you would want…" she trailed off, glancing up at me from underneath her eyelashes, her gaze a little guilty. "Well, you know."

"EJ?" I repeated aloud, and this time I couldn't keep the skepticism out of my voice.

"Your father's name was Edward, too," she replied, almost immediately, trying to offer me a good excuse. I couldn't help but chuckle a little bit at the obvious guilt in her voice.

"Yes, it was," I allowed, though I had issues with giving our son a family name almost as much as I had issues with what I was slowly starting to suspect she had middle-named our son. "What—?"

 _Sssound! Pretty sound! … Daddy…_

"Hmm," I hummed in surprise, my still heart swelling with amazement, pride, _love_ , and so many other emotions that I couldn't think the names of at the moment.

"What?" Bella pressed, her voice slightly worried as she gripped my hand tighter.

I pulled in a shaky breath, my eyes slowly moving up to connect with my wife's, and, again, I wished I could shed tears to physically show how happy I was, and my voice shook as I whispered, "He likes my voice too."

"Of course, he does," she replied, her voice gloating – she knew that I now knew that she had been right all along, and she was reveling in that. I almost laughed aloud, so filled with happiness, relief, and love. "You have the most beautiful voice in the universe. Who wouldn't love it?"

 _That's enough,_ Rosalie snapped in her thoughts, coming over to lean over the back of the couch, no longer able to keep to the sidelines and keep her mouth shut. She shot a smug smile at me as a low growl built in my chest, and I glared at her as she spoke aloud to Bella, "Do you have a backup plan? What if he's a she?"

Bella took one of her hands from her tummy and scrubbed her wet cheeks with the back of her hand, and I reached up with one hand to gently cup her jaw, my thumb rubbing her bottom lip softly as she replied to Rosalie's question. "I kicked a few things around. Playing with Renee and Esme. I was thinking… Ruh- _nez_ -may."

 _Pretty… pretty sssound… pretty wwword…_

I smiled softly as my gaze drifted back down to Bella's round belly. It wasn't an everyday name, and I liked that, and apparently so did the baby, his thoughts cooing in delight. Or _her_ thoughts, maybe – it was difficult to tell, even now that I could make out the baby's mental voice. It was just small and sort of unisex at the moment, so I couldn't say for sure whether the baby was one sex or the other simply based on the thoughts.

"Ruhnezmay?" Rosalie repeated, her voice skeptical, leaning closer to Bella despite the warning growl slowly building in my chest. _Well, it's not the_ worst _name that I've ever heard, but still…_ I rolled my eyes at my sister's selfish thoughts, the soft growl still rumbling in my chest – if she leaned any closer, my teeth were going into her throat.

"R-e-n-e-s-m-e-e," Bella explained, cringing a little. "Too weird?"

"No, I like it," Rosalie assured her quickly _. It's not like I can't change it later anyway_ , she added in her head, and my teeth snapped together in outrage, unconsciously baring my teeth in a silent threat, and I was grateful that Bella's eyes were focused on our hands on her belly as opposed to my face. "It's beautiful. And one of a kind, so _that_ fits." _My unique baby_ …

I resisted the urge to jump up and rip her pretty, blonde head from her shoulders, and I concentrated on the baby's thoughts as a distraction.

"I still think he's an Edward," Bella smiled; I could feel her eyes move to my face, her gaze warming my whole body, from head to toe to heart.

 _Mmm… Mmmoma, Daddy… pretty sssounds… touch… cold… love… Daddy, Mommma…_

"What?" Bella prodded, her voice and face glowing with joy and excitement. "What's he thinking now?"

I was silent for a moment, trying to translate the disjointed, infant thoughts into words that a grown-up could understand. The child's thoughts were amazingly clear, but at the same time, there was _so much_ that the baby just didn't – and, really, _couldn't_ – know. He was still learning, though learning quickly, and it was completely fascinating to watch the process from the inside, so to speak.

Unable to fight the urge to be closer any longer, I curled myself closer to my wife, and laid my head down on her belly, so that my ear was pressed tenderly against the top peak of her belly, barely registering the three, shocked gasps that I heard in the background.

Instead, I focused on what I was hearing. The sound of the baby's thoughts weren't any louder because of the closeness, but I could hear more clearly the sounds of Bella's body – the soft gurgling of her stomach, the swishing of the amniotic fluid in her womb as the baby moved gently, the _whoosh-whoosh-whoosh_ of my wife's heart, and something else… a light, fluttering rhythm that I couldn't place, but sounded beautiful to me for some reason.

 _Ooh, cold… Daddy… that… Daddy… that Daddy… Daddy cold… love Daddy… love Momma… my Daddy, my Momma… love my Momma… love them so much…_

"Oh…" I gasped softly, my throat tightening in emotion as I realized what I was hearing. He could _feel_ me – he knew who I was! He knew who _Bella_ was – and he _loved_ us! He _really_ loved us. I slowly opened my eyes, though I hadn't realized that I had ever closed them, and gazed up at Bella in a daze of amazement and love.

"He loves you," I whispered to her, my voice thick from emotion. "He absolutely _adores_ you." _And me! He loves_ me _too!_

Bella and I gazed into each other's eyes for an indefinite amount of time, in our own little bubble as we ignored the other two people in the room. It was just Bella and me and the little being that was made from our eternal love, reveling in the amazement and love circling through us – our own perfect, little family.

A sudden clatter rudely popped our bubble, and our heads snapped up and turned toward the source of the sound, my breath catching in horror as I took in Jacob's rigid, trembling form, and my mind immediately registered every single one of his tortured thoughts that I had been able to shove into the background until now.

"Ahh," I choked aloud, his pain so great that it became mine for a moment. I truly felt terrible that he was hurting so much because of something that made Bella and me so happy – damn it all to hell, but I had grown a little bit attached to the mutt in the last few days; he wasn't so bad when he wasn't trying to seduce my mate away from me.

Knowing that I would probably regret it later, I quickly stood up and dashed to the end table on the far end of the couch, by Bella's feet, and yanked out the keys to my Vanquish, praying to any higher being that would listen that the car would appeal to the fanatic in Jacob, and he would take care of it.

"Go, Jacob," I said gently, tossing him the keys, which he caught reflexively, his body still rigid. "Get away from here."

He was gone in the next second, the garage door slamming behind him just as I sat back down on the floor by Bella's head, my hands automatically going to her belly once again.

"I can't believe you gave him the keys to the Vanquish," Rosalie scoffed, smirking at me in disdain. "You're _never_ going to get the stench out."

"Where is he going?" Bella asked, her voice worried as she nibbled nervously on her bottom lip. "Is he mad at me?" she continued in a small voice, her eyes dropping to the floor in guilt.

"No, my love," I promised her, leaning up to capture her lips with mine for a moment. "He just needed a while to himself – he'll be back."

"Unfortunately," Rosalie interjected, unable to just keep quiet. "I think we should get him neutered."

"Rose!" Bella chastised, her cheeks tingeing with pink, but there was a hint of laughter in her voice, and I could tell that she was fighting a smile.

A moment of silence passed, and then we all burst out laughing.


	2. Chapter Two: Intimacy

**A/N:**

 ** _To My New Readers:_** This is a repost and finishing of one of my existing stories, which I had taken down a few years ago. I have decided to repost it and finish the tale, as it was originally a short story, anyway (one I really enjoyed, as well). The first four chapters were written quite some time ago, and I have since received a BFA in Creative Writing, so I hope you'll be able to spot the improvement in my writing starting in the fifth chapter.

 ** _To My Long Time Readers:_** Hi! So, um… yeah, I'm not dead! Woohoo! As I said above, I went to college, and have received a BFA in Creative Writing; in the meantime, I did not write much fan fiction at all, not for the lack of desire to do so, but simply because I had no time! I was also in the process of writing my own novel(s), of which I have completed two and am currently in the process of self-publication.

 _This chapter was originally written in 2011._

 **Beautiful Dreamer**

Our sudden laughter startled the baby again, and Bella yelped and clutched her belly when he kicked out against her.

"Bella!" I gasped, sitting up to cup her face gently. "Are you all right, love? Look at me."

"I'm okay," she panted, slowly starting to relax, bringing one of her hands up to press against mine on her cheek, while the other one rubbed small circles on a spot on her belly by her popped out belly button. She smiled at me, though it was obviously strained. "I'm okay. Please don't be upset with him, Edward; he didn't mean to hurt me."

I was silent for a moment, eyeing her closely to make sure she was really okay, but she seemed more concerned with how _I_ would react, worried that I would become angry with the baby again. I smiled softly, trying to reassure her, and I moved my hands back down to cradle her stomach.

" _Don't touch him_!" Rosalie snarled as I went to lean my head back down to my wife's belly, and a moment later I was being flung across the room, my back slamming into the media wall.

"Rosalie!" Bella gasped, her voice shocked and angry.

 _What… noise… loud… too loud… what wrong?_

I jumped to my feet, completely furious, and I bared my teeth at Rosalie, a low growl building in my chest. "You are _scaring_ him, Rosalie."

She shrieked a growl back at me, her body crouched defensively in front of my wife, and it took every ounce of my self-control not to snarl back at her. I didn't want to scare the baby anymore than he already was – he could easily end up seriously hurting his mother if we kept startling him like this.

"Rose, it's okay, really," Bella tried to assure my sister, reaching out to gently touch her hand. "He wasn't going to do anything to EJ—"

"You don't know that, Bella," Rosalie snarled, yanking her hand away from Bella's. "He could be just trying to get close enough to you to the hurt the baby."

"Oh, and since when were you the mind-reader, Rosalie?" I growled, my hands clenching into fists at my sides. "I could no more hurt that baby than I could hurt Bella."

"So you're saying that you're willing to hurt your wife now too?" Rosalie replied viciously, purposefully twisting my words in order to make Bella doubt my intentions. It was too bad for my sister that Bella knew better than that.

"Rose, come on, don't be ridiculous," Bella snapped, her patience finally starting to unravel. She heaved herself up into a sitting position, wincing a little with the sudden movement, one of her hand going to rub her lower back. I took a step to rush to her side to comfort her, but Rosalie side-stepped me, snarling and blocking my way. "Rose, stop! My _husband_ is _not_ going to hurt us!"

"Bella—" Rosalie began, but Bella cut her off angrily.

"No, Rose, just stop!" she said, her eyes welling up with frustrated tears. "I appreciate your concern for EJ, but I'm tired of all of this fighting! Edward can hear him now, he won't hurt the baby! You…" she trailed off, and turned to look at me uncertainly for a moment. "You love him, don't you?"

"Yes, Bella," I promised, slightly breathless with the amount of emotion crashing down on me. "I understand now – I understand, and I love him and you so much. You have no idea."

Bella nodded knowingly, wiping her tears away quickly before turning back to my sister. "You see? He's not going to hurt us. Rose, please, I need some time with my husband right now."

Rosalie didn't move, keeping her glare on me for a minute or so before reluctantly nodding, and moving off to the side. I dashed forward to sit next to Bella on the couch, using one of my hands to massage her lower back. She sighed and relaxed into my embrace, leaning her head against my shoulder as I kissed her forehead.

Rosalie stood awkwardly at the end of the couch for a moment, watching us jealously. I saw us in her mind as she registered that we were starting to become a real family, and that devastated her because she knew that I wouldn't give her even the slightest chance to _play Mommy_ now.

The somewhat tense silence was broken by an insistent knocking on the front door, and Rosalie mumbled a quick "I'll get it" before disappearing from the room.

"She's just trying to help," Bella murmured quietly, tilting her head up to press a soft kiss to the underside of my jaw.

"I can read her mind, Bella," I replied, somewhat stiffly. "I know exactly what she's trying to do – and I have a feeling that you do too."

Bella sighed, nodding sadly, "I know. But if that's what helps her help _me_ then she can think whatever she wants; I know she's not doing this for me, Edward – I know she's doing it only for the baby."

"But I wouldn't listen," I said, my voice sad as I gazed down at her, ignoring the sound of raised voices down the hall for the moment and concentrating on my wife.

She lifted one of her hands to cup my cheek and used the other to pull my hand from her back and entwined our fingers, bringing them to rest on the top peak of her belly. "You're listening now."

"Yes, I am," I said, my voice determined. "Everything is going to be fine."

Bella smiled, amusement clearly dancing in her eyes. "That's what I've been trying to tell you."

My soft laughter was cut short as a very angry, very _naked_ , Quileute female stormed into the room, her eyes livid, Rosalie following behind her with one of Emmett's shirts.

I quickly turned my head away, closing my eyes for good measure – not that I could stop the images of Leah's naked backside from invading my mind, via Rosalie's thoughts, but I was trying to be polite nonetheless.

"Leah," I spoke calmly, trying to convey comfort in my voice. Leah didn't like us at all, but we _did_ appreciate all that she, Jacob, and Seth were doing for us. "Rosalie has some clothes for—"

"I'm not wearing anything that reeks of bloodsucker, thank you very much," she snarled back at me, her voice menacing. "I'd rather be naked."

"Glad you're so comfortable in your own skin then," Rosalie muttered sarcastically.

"What's wrong with Jacob?" Leah demanded, ignoring the vampires in the room and directing her question to Bella, who I could feel blushing furiously next to me. "Why did he leave like that?"

"Leah," I began again, trying to ease her anger by explaining the situation in a gentle voice. "He just needed some time to himself – he'll be back. It's just been a stressful day, and—"

" _Was I asking you, leech?!_ " Leah screeched, her voice and thoughts furious.

I turned my head back and opened my eyes, chancing a look at her. She was trembling so badly that I was afraid she would lose her control at any second and transform. Standing up, I began to walk forward, my hands up in front of me to signal that I didn't mean any harm.

"Leah, I—"

" _Don't talk to me!_ " she yelled, glaring at me before turning back to Bella, who was cradling her tummy protectively, shaking in fear as Leah's furious gaze landed on her. "What did you do to him, you whore? Don't you realize that every day that you asking him to stay is another day that you're killing him? He loves you more than he can comprehend, and you treat him like this! Asking him to stay when you're dying by carrying a bloodsucker's demon spawn?"

"Leah—" I growled, starting to crouch in defense, but she cut me off, still screaming at Bella.

"You're _killing_ him! What's he going to do when you die, huh? You think he can just _get over that_? You're nothing but a selfish bitch, and I _hope you die_! I hope both you and that disgusting thing growing inside of you _die_ and _leave us alone_!"

"Get. Out," I snarled, no longer caring about politeness or gentlemanly behavior. I bared my teeth at her in fury, storming forward to grab her upper arm and drag her out of the house, but she jerked out of my grasp and raced for the door by herself, bursting into her wolf form before she even touched the last step of the porch.

Quickly, I turned back to Bella, rushing to her side just as the first sobs started to escape. I cradled her to my chest for a moment, before taking her into my arms and standing up, starting for the stairs.

"Where are you going?" Rosalie darted in front of me, blocking my way, her voice and expression anxious.

"I'm taking her up to bed, Rosalie," I replied, completely exasperated with my sister's attitude. "She needs some rest."

"I-I'm okay," Bella sniffled, pressing her face into my chest. "I can r-rest on the couch. I don't want to be treated like an invalid."

I sighed, shaking my head, "Humor me, love – everyone is out hunting, and I'm sure our bed is a lot more comfortable than the couch."

Bella was silent for a moment, before nodding into my chest, hiccupping a sob back at the same time. I looked up at Rosalie, patiently waiting for her to move. She hesitated for a moment, glancing nervously between Bella – or, rather, Bella's stomach – and me, and then she slowly moved out of the way, but not without a parting thought.

 _I'll be listening_.

I rolled my eyes at her theatrics, carefully maneuvering the stairs so that I didn't jostle Bella too much, and a few seconds later, I was slowly laying her down onto our bed, the bedroom door shut firmly behind us.

"Do you need anything, love?" I asked, reaching over to brush her limp hair out of her red-rimmed eyes. "Do you want some extra pillows? Do you want me to change your clothes? Something to eat or drink, maybe?"

Bella shook her head and sniffled, reaching out for me, "I want you."

"Shh…" I soothed, slipping into bed with her so that we were facing each other on our sides. I gently kissed her forehead and rubbed her back and the side of her belly, while she tangled her fingers into the hair on the back of my head, tugging lightly.

"I'm a horrible person," Bella mumbled, tears streaming down her face, her chest heaving with sobs.

 _Momma… sad… Momma sad… no sad… don't want Momma sad… make better… Daddy make better…_

I couldn't help but smile at the baby's thoughts, and I cuddled myself closer to my wife, so that our bodies were pressed together as close as they could be, what with her belly in the way.

"Shh…" I soothed her again, gently bringing her lips to mine. "Sweetheart, calm down – you are _not_ a horrible person—"

"Yes, I am!" she wailed, wincing when the baby jerked in her womb, startled by his mother's suddenly loud voice.

 _Sorry… sorry… no hurt Momma… sorry…_

"Bella, stop," I said, gently, but firmly, but she shook her head stubbornly.

"Leah's right," she sniffled, guilt evident in her voice. "I don't know why I can't let Jake go! I just don't know! And I know it's hurting him, and you, but I don't know what to do! I feel so torn…" she trailed off into broken sobs against my chest.

"Bella, it's all right," I promised her. "Jacob understands, and so do I. Don't listen to Leah, darling, she doesn't know what she's talking about. Now, _please_ calm down."

"I c-c-can't!" she hiccupped, her voice bordering on hysterical, and I knew that if I didn't do something right now, she could easily end up triggering early labor or, at the very least, an intense panic attack.

"Bella," I said sternly, trying to gain her attention. She looked up at me, but her sobs were still heavy. "Bella, kiss me."

"Wh-what?" she sniffled, startled by the command in my voice.

"Kiss. Me," I repeated firmly, bringing my hand up to cup her jaw. "Kiss me now."

Bella stared up at me for a moment, slightly stunned, before tilting her head further up and moving forward, pressing her lips to mine.

It was rather short and chaste, and we pulled back after just a few seconds, but then she leaned forward again and kissed me again, just the same as before, pulling back after only a few seconds. And then again, and again, and again.

We repeated this kiss again and again, for nearly ten minutes, and then her eyes drifted closed, followed by my own, and the length of time our lips were pressed together increased with each kiss. Five minutes after that, our tongues were tentatively sweeping across each other's lips, each of us silently begging the other for entrance. Of course, Bella couldn't be in my mouth – at least, not until she was changed – and so I was graced with the privilege of finally tasting her again after so many weeks and days of being denied, and both of us were panting heavily in desire, her tears long forgotten.

 _Warm… Momma warm… mmm…_

I laughed a little into our kiss, and Bella pulled back by a few centimeters, eyeing me curiously, her breath ragged. "What?"

"What were you thinking about?" I asked, amusement clear in my voice.

"You were kissing me like _that_ , and you want to know what I was _thinking_?" Bella asked incredulously, her cheeks flushed. "You _know_ what I was thinking, Edward Cullen."

I laughed again, "Yes, I do. Do you know, every time you become aroused, your uterus gets warmer? The baby likes it."

Bella blushed darker and groaned. "Way to ruin the mood, Edward."

"Sorry," I laughed, genuinely contrite. The knowledge didn't dissuade _me_ , but apparently, she didn't see it in the same light. "That wasn't my intention – I was only telling you because I thought it was sweet."

She cocked an eyebrow at me, "You thought it was _sweet_ that our baby likes when his mother gets _aroused_?"

I laughed loudly, understanding her point, but I explained my view between chuckles anyway. "Well, that's not exactly what I meant. He likes the warmth – it comforts him; he doesn't really know _why_ you're getting warmer, only that you are. His thought processes about it are adorable. I wish you could hear him too."

Bella smiled, her eyes shimmering as she reached up to cup my jaw, stroking her thumb across my lips. "I'm just glad _you_ can hear him. I was so worried that even if everything worked out, you wouldn't want anything to do with EJ."

I pulled in a shaky gasp at her words, the image coming unbidden to my mind: Bella and me, immortal and beautiful, a gorgeous, little, brown-eyed, brown-haired boy on Bella's hip. In my mind, I leaned forward to press a kiss to Bella's ruby lips. As I pulled away, the little boy reached out for me, tilting his head up, his lips slightly puckered, wanting kisses too. I turned away from him, my expression cold, and giant tears spilled from the child's chocolate eyes.

The image was so wrong, I thought I would be physically sick, which, of course, was impossible for me. I shook my head hard as if the motion could shake out the images in my head, and I crashed my lips back to Bella's, probably a little too hard, but I couldn't bring myself to mind at the moment.

" _No_ ," I whimpered against her lips, my tongue sneaking into her mouth quickly between words. " _No, love_. That would never happen – how could I not love something that's a part of you? Loving him was never a choice – I was just so…" I broke off with a sob, struggling to continue. "I was angry with _myself_ , Bella. I thought he would be every bad part of me with no awareness for human life – for _your_ life. Watching you waste away because of _me_ … you have no idea how guilty I felt – how I _still_ feel."

"Don't feel guilty," Bella pleaded, her eyes shimmering with tears again. "He's worth it, Edward – every bit of my pain is worth it for EJ to live."

I didn't know what to say to that because I could see both sides of the argument clearly. On the one hand, I agreed with her – now that I understood fully and completely, and I could hear the baby's beautiful, innocent thoughts, I agreed that our baby was worth any pain or struggle either of us might face. However, on the other hand, it _killed_ me to see her suffer in any way. I had heard many a husband and father, while doing my hospital rotations during my med school days, wish that they could take some of their mate's pain when it came to pregnancy and labor – I now understood that wish and desire on a level that I never could have imagined.

I gave my wife a weak smile and pressed my lips back to hers, softer this time, before pulling back with a small chuckle. "Bella, are you happy?"

She smiled back at me, a combination of relief and confusion in her expression. "Yes, of course."

" _Really_ happy?" I insisted, my smile turning into a bit of a smirk.

" _Yes_ , Edward," Bella replied, leaning forward to place hot, open-mouthed kisses up and down the underside of my jaw. "Extraordinarily happy."

"Mmm," I sighed, gently rubbing the side of her belly, slowly circling down until my hand started slipping up underneath of her shirt. "Bella?"

"Hm?"

"Can we discuss his name?" I asked, biting my lip nervously when she paused in her kisses.

"Isn't it tradition to name boys after their fathers?" she countered with her own question, obviously avoiding the real reason I was going in on this; she knew that I knew.

"Jacob isn't his father," I said gently, tired of beating around the bush.

"Edward," Bella said firmly, pulling back to stare up at me. I couldn't tell if she was mad at me or just being stubborn. "Don't do this – Jacob has done so much for us, I have to—"

"He won't appreciate it," I interrupted her, forcing my voice to be void of any jealously, though I couldn't tell how well that worked. "You know he won't – he hates the baby because it's mine. What makes you think he would appreciate our son carrying his name?"

She was silent for a moment, playing with the top buttons on my shirt, and when she finally spoke, her voice was wobbly with emotion again, and I cursed myself for bringing her out of her good mood. "Even if he doesn't appreciate it, I still want the baby's middle name to be Jacob. Please, Edward? It would mean so much to me."

"Ugh," I sighed, laughing a little bit in frustration. I smiled down at her, defeated. "Damn your _please's_ – I can never say no to you when you use that word. But I want to choose the middle name for a girl," I added quickly when she smiled smugly at me. "Deal?"

"Okay," she laughed. "I didn't have one picked out yet anyway."

I smiled, "Now, I _really_ hope it's a girl."

Bella rolled her eyes and stuck her tongue out at me, and I smirked, tilting my head down quickly to capture her tongue between my lips. She was surprised at first, but quickly melted into my impromptu kiss, running her hands up and down my chest, underneath my shirt, her nails scraping deliciously along my muscles. I couldn't help but let out an audible groan when her nails caught on my nipples, sending pleasurable shivers down my spine, and she laughed, her voice slightly husky.

"Edward?" she murmured, pulling back just a little bit, her expression eager and hesitant at the same time.

"Hm?"

"Make love to me," Bella requested in a small voice, and my eyes widened in surprise.

"I…" I trailed off, eyeing her closely for a moment. "Would you be… okay? If we made love, I mean. If you think you might be uncomfortable—"

"I'll be okay," she promised, tugging my shirt up and over my head. "I want to."

I swallowed thickly and nodded, taking my shirt from her hands and throwing it to the floor. I breathed in deeply, smelling how aroused she was, and my body responded accordingly, becoming hard and aching for oneness with her.

Pressing my lips back to hers and sweeping my tongue into her mouth, I carefully started tugging her shirt up, and I tried not to move too fast or rough, but apparently my slowness was annoying to her because she lowered her hands from my face and quickly pushed her shirt up and over her head. As she threw it to the floor, I took the time to gaze down at her now exposed torso.

Aside from the horrid purple blotches covering her stomach, the first thing I noticed was that her breasts had gotten bigger, which I knew happened with normal pregnancies as well. Cautiously, I brought my hand up to cup one of the swollen mounds, but I immediately pulled back when she gasped, her expression uncomfortable.

"I'm sorry," I murmured against her lips. "Was I too rough?"

"No," she promised, shaking her head minutely. "They're just sore."

"Maybe we shouldn't do this," I said, pulling my face back from hers to look down at her in concern. "If you're hurting—"

"No, it's okay," she interrupted me quickly, her fingers making sweeping motions up and down my bare chest. With every pass, her hands came closer and closer to the waist of my jeans. "I want to, Edward. I need you so much. And you can touch my breasts – just be very, _very_ gentle."

I swallowed my nerves and worries back thickly, nodding uncertainly. She seemed to take that as her sign to start undoing the fly of my jeans, purposefully pressing against my straining erection, which elicited a deep groan from me, my eyes rolling into the back of my head at the sensation.

Bella struggled for a moment against me, and then I reached down to help her lower my pants and underwear, throwing them to the floor before bringing my hands back up to work the remainder of her own clothes off.

Sooner than I had anticipated, we were both naked, our kisses becoming heavy, our caresses of each other's bodies becoming more daring. I couldn't help but let out an appreciatory grunt when I felt her warm hand wrap around me, giving a few gentle strokes before letting her thumb play in the fluid that was quickly gathering at my tip.

"Ungh… Bella…" I groaned, pulling my lips from hers to nuzzle my face into her neck.

I brought my hand down to gently cup her, and, though I had suspected as much from her scent alone, I was surprised to find her wetness so thick that it was weeping down her thighs. For a moment, it scared me, as I thought her water might have broke, but the baby's thoughts were sleepy and content and not in any distress, and Bella didn't seem to be in any pain.

Without even realizing what I was doing, my hips started thrusting slowly, forcing my erection to slide in and out of the grip of my wife's hand, my arousal making a decent lubricant. Out of reaction, she tightened her grip, and I let out a strangled groan in her ear, unable to keep my sounds at bay. Apparently, all my voice knew when I was intimate with Bella seemed to be animalistic sounds and her name. That's not to say that we didn't talk during sex at all, but the majority of it was just sound and feeling.

"Feel good?" Bella breathed in my ear, and I nodded my head frantically, whimpering like a child whose toy had just been stolen.

"So good…" I moaned, forcing my voice to string something together that sounded at least halfway coherent. "My Bella… God, it's so good…"

"Be inside me," she beckoned in a sensual voice that rendered me into nothing more than pile of mush, only malleable by her hand alone.

"Are you sure?" I managed to ask, my concern for her well-being – and now our child's as well – above all else.

Instead of answering me with her voice, she used her grip on me to try and pull me to her.

"Wait, wait," I gasped, pulling away from her for a moment.

"Edward—" Bella began, frustration evident in her voice, but she broke off as she watched me shift my position, climbing over her so that I was spooned up behind her instead, my hips pressed against her backside, silently showing her what I wanted. "Oh."

"Is this okay?" I panted, bushing her long hair away from her neck so that I could kiss behind her ear. "I didn't want to put any weight on the baby, and I thought you might be hurting if you were on top."

She nodded, agreeing with me, and arched her back a little, causing my aching erection to slip down and between her thighs. I was breathing heavily in anticipation, and I gently reached down and pulled her top leg up and back a little bit so that it was propped up by my leg, while my other arm pushed under her pillows so as to cradle her as we made love.

When we were situated comfortably – or as comfortably as she could be, anyway – I asked her again if she was sure; when she simply reached down and started to touch herself, I had my answer. She hardly ever touched herself in my presence.

Groaning, I gripped her thigh a little bit tighter than I should have and gave a few shallow thrusts through her wetness, trying to find her entrance without having to let go of her and guide myself.

Giggling sweetly when I growled in frustration, Bella tilted her head back to smile up at me. "Need some help, lover?"

"Please," I begged, my body tingling with pleasure and joy at her use of that particular endearment. She'd never called me that before – _sweetheart_ or _darling_ were usually the only endearments she used for me. She'd once called me _baby_ in the middle of a climax, but had blushed a brilliant red afterwards, when she realized what she had called me, despite my telling her that I had thought it was sweet.

Reaching under herself and back, Bella gently took me into her grip again, guiding me through her warmth and to the place where we wanted me to be. As soon as I felt the familiar opening against my tip, I thrust again and slid halfway in, and we gasped in unison, her hand dropping away from me, no longer needed now that I'd found where I wanted to go.

But, _dear lord_ , was she tight! I realized that it was probably a combination of the position and the weight of the baby pressing down on her. Glancing over my shoulder to the bedside table behind me, I made sure that her box of tissues were still there, and I sighed in relief when I saw them. I knew with all of this pressure on her body, she wouldn't be likely to hold my fluids in her body like she had when we'd been at the island, and as soon as I pulled out when we were finished, a mess would be sure to follow.

Giving another shallow thrust, my body slid fully into hers, my hips flush with her backside, my tip pressed firmly against her cervix. I worried about the latter though, so I pulled back a fraction of an inch to take the pressure off of that particular part of her body, making sure the baby didn't feel uncomfortable. His thoughts were actually quite content, and I wondered if he might even be sleeping.

"Is this okay?" I asked Bella again, my breath coming in heavy pants by her ear. "Is it too tight, my love?"

"No," Bella sighed, taking her hand away from herself to reach back and rub her wet fingers against my hip in a soothing motion. "I'm okay – I'm just so happy to have you inside of me again. I feel _whole_ now. Please make love to me, Edward…"

I groaned, dropping my head to nuzzle my face back into her neck and started moving, rocking my body gently in and out of hers with slow, shallow trusts.

"Mmm…" Bella sighed, pushing back at me, her hand moving from my hip to cover my hand that was gripping her thigh. "Oh… God. I love you, Edward, I love you… oooh…"

"I love you too," I promised breathlessly, pressing loose, wet kisses up and down the column of her throat. We'd barely been coupled for more than a minute, and already I felt close to losing it. Little zaps of electricity were sparking in the pit of my stomach, and pleasure mounted on top of pleasure. "Oh, Bella, oh… it's… I… ungh… so good… nngh…"

"Talk to me," she begged. She knew me so well, my beautiful wife – talking would distract me a little longer, helping me to hold out.

"Bella," I cried, my voice strangled with pleasure. The muscles in my stomach were twisting and jumping erratically, and it took every ounce of my will power to stop focusing so much on what was going on in my stomach and groin and talk to her. "You feel so good, sweetheart. I never – _ungh_ , oh God! – never want to stop. Never, ever!" I looked down at her, her face and breasts flushed in a beautiful red as she gazed up at me. Her eyes were slightly glazed over and unfocused, her mouth parted to let out her labored breaths, and I couldn't stop myself from crashing my lips down on hers, my tongue sweeping briefly into her mouth. "Nngh… taste so good… want you always, my Bella. I can't wait until I can taste you _everywhere_." She cried out in ecstasy against my lips as she realized what I meant and tightened her grip on my hand, her muscles squeezing me deliciously. "These beautiful lips… you have such amazing lips, my love… I want to see them wrapped around me… sucking on me…"

Okay, maybe this talking thing _wasn't_ such a good idea – I was suddenly feeling closer than ever. Bella, on the other hand, seemed to love my words, responding with more vigor than I had thought she was capable of in her current condition. We were rocking our bodies together quickly now, but I was careful to make sure our movements weren't too rough, and her stomach and breasts weren't being jerked around.

"Oh… oh, my Bella… please… oh God, please," I begged her, but I knew it wasn't going to help. She was thoroughly enjoying herself, but I knew she wasn't close to climaxing like I was. She'd always taken a longer time to reach orgasm, and I nearly always came before she did. Males were more sexually sensitive than females, vampire males even more so, but I had certainly never been so close to losing it, so fast. It usually took me at least ten minutes to get to this point.

We were barely going on to three.

"Talking isn't – oh, _nngh_! – isn't helping?" she asked, and I had to admire her for being so strong as to bring herself out of the haze and talk to me.

I shook my head, hiding my face in her neck again, frustrated with my utter lack of control.

"What can I do?" Bella asked, her voice slightly pleading. She knew it embarrassed me to lose myself so fast, and she wanted to help.

"Come!" I sobbed into her neck, completely desperate. I was so close, I didn't know whether I would be able to force myself to slow down or even stop to collect myself again. "Please, come!"

"I can't," she cried back to me, her hand gripping mine tightly. "God, baby, I'm sorry – I can't come."

"Ungh," I groaned at her endearment, the coil in my stomach tightening even more. Summoning as much control as I could, I managed to slow my thrusts, but Bella was still pushing back at me, trying to force me to keep going. I tightened my grip on her thigh a little bit. "Bella, please, wait just—"

"No!" she cried, her voice defiant as she kept pushing back at me. "It's okay, Edward, just let go."

I shook my head, mortified. "But you're not—"

"You'll take care of me," she said knowingly, using her thumb to rub soothing circles across the back of my hand. "Go ahead and come, and then you can concentrate on me, okay? I want to feel you."

My body twitched inside of hers, as if agreeing with her, and I couldn't bring myself to argue with her. I may have waited for one hundred five years to indulge myself with sexual pleasures (and I was thoroughly glad that I did, because no one could compare to my wife's beautiful body), but now that I had, the past two and a half weeks of celibacy had been utter torture. It had been _so_ long, and I was _so_ close…

Groaning in defeat, I started moving again, slipping my hand out from under hers to reach across her and grab onto the mattress below her. My fingers easily shredded through the fabric as I started channeling my excess strength into that hand. My body was moving frantically behind hers, my thrusts becoming erratic as I fell deeper and deeper into sensation.

"Oh… oh, Bell-Bella… oh, I'm… I'm… oooh," I couldn't stop the noises and words coming from my mouth as my body started spiraling out of control. I barely registered that Bella had moved her hand back to grip my hip, whether for leverage for herself or to encourage me, I didn't know, but the sensation of her warm fingers gripping my hip and pulling me towards her set me off. I gave one final thrust and then froze, my hips flush with her backside. I barely had enough sense to make sure I wasn't pressing hard against her cervix before I started spilling my seed into her. "Oh, oh, oh, _oh_ … _ungh_ , _coming… I'm coming, Bella!_ "

"Mmm…" she sighed in response, a lazy smile pulling at the corners of her lips. My body begged me to close my eyes and revel in sensation alone, but I refused, knowing the sight of my beautiful wife would always manage to prolong my orgasm. "I know, lover, I can feel it."

"Oh!" I cried out at her words, my hips giving an involuntary jerk. Dear lord, did she even _know_ how sexy she was? "Oooh, Bella… it's _so good_ …"

Bella was amazing, patiently guiding me through my orgasm with soft, encouraging words. When I had finished and practically collapsed against her, my body spent, she allowed me the time I needed to collect myself, rubbing soothing circles into the flesh of my hip, murmuring words of love and pleasure.

Letting go of a sigh, I lifted my head from her shoulder, and she giggled at the lazy, satisfied smile that I gave her. Quickly, I darted my head forward and captured her lips with mine, disentangling my hand from the remnants of the mattress – making a mental note to order a new one soon – and bringing it back to press my fingers against her wet flesh.

"Do you know how good you just made me feel?" I whispered, pulling back from her lips to breathe and murmur against her delicate ear. She squeaked and then moaned deeply as my cold fingers made contact with her clit, massaging the tiny bundle of nerves the way she had shown me that she liked, in what seemed like forever ago, on the island. "I love coming in you, my Bella; you're so warm and wet, and it feels amazing."

I nibbled on the shell of her ear with my lips for a few minutes, my fingers working her closer and closer to release, and I reveled in the sounds of pleasure she was emitting and the flutter of her muscles twitching around me as her body prepared to peak.

"Won't you come for me, my love?" I pleaded, my voice husky with desire. I was already hard again within her, but I made no attempt to move, wanting to concentrate on her alone. I was rewarded with a fresh coating of hot arousal from her, her body twitching, climbing higher and higher. Almost there…

"I can't wait until you're more durable," I whispered quietly in her ear, as if I were sharing a special secret with her, which I guess I was, in a way. I also knew her just as well as she knew me – talking to her about our love life _after_ her change always managed to get her going. "You'll be the most beautiful vampire in existence. I hope I'll be able to read your mind, but it's okay if I can't because I can read your body so well, I'm starting to think I don't need to be able to read your mind. We fit so well together, do you feel? We were made for each other, and it's only going to be more amazing when I don't have to hold back for fear of hurting you."

"Yes, Edward!" Bella cried out, bringing her hand down to clutch at mine, buried in her soft, wet curls. She held me there firmly, her silent communication to me that I had better not stop until she'd gotten her orgasm.

I chuckled, feeling how close she was, watching as her body started to unravel before my eyes. Time to go in for the kill…

"And Bella?" I said in a deeper, predatory voice. I breathed gently against her ear, taking in her beautiful scent, automatically swallowing back the venom that welled in my mouth in response. "When you're finally able to fully withstand my strength, the first thing I'm going to do when we're alone, is take you so hard that the only thing you'll remember is my name, and I'll have you screaming it for _hours_."

That did the trick.

" _Edward_!" Bella gasped, and I had a feeling that she was purposefully trying to keep her voice down so that we didn't startle the baby. There was nothing like a strong kick to the ribs to ruin an amazing orgasm.

I crashed my lips down on hers when I felt the scream rising in her throat, and as soon as our lips were touching, her muscles clamped down on me – _hard_. I gasped and grunted against her lips as the sensation of her muscles milking me pulled another orgasm from me, albeit not as intense as the first one. Her muscles twitched and contracted more heavily when she felt me spilling into her again, her orgasm becoming more intense, and she bit down on my lip in reaction.

 _Damn_.

I panted heavily as the waves of pleasure slowly faded, Bella's muscles giving erratic twitches around me as she experienced little aftershocks. I wrapped my arm around her, my hand moving up to cradle the bruised underside of her belly, and I leaned down to nuzzle my face into her hair, my lips searching out the sensitive skin behind her ear.

She laughed lightly at my administrations and brought her hand down to cover mine, so that we cradled her swollen and battered tummy together. "He's okay?"

"Mmm," I sighed, brushing my thumb gently across her badly stretched skin. "He's fine. He's either resting or sleeping – if the latter is possible, of course. He's very calm."

I felt her cheeks pull upward, and I could hear the smile in her voice when she sighed happily in response. I chuckled and lifted my head to gaze down at her for a moment, and then pressed a swift kiss to her cheek.

"Um, Edward?" she asked after a minute, a blush rising on her cheeks, her voice slightly uncomfortable.

"Yes, my love?" I replied, frowning in concern when she avoided eye contact with me.

"It _is_ a little too tight now," she whispered in reply, her face becoming redder.

"Oh!" I gasped, surprised for a moment. "Of course, darling – just a moment."

Gently, I slowly withdrew myself from her, and – just as I had suspected – her body wasn't able to hold my fluids in because of the pressure bearing down on her. I quickly reached behind me and plucked a few tissues from the box on the bedside table and went about lovingly cleaning up the mess so that she could rest comfortably.

"Oh, my God!" Bella gasped, completely mortified when she felt it. It took me a moment to realize what she was so embarrassed about – it's not like we hadn't had to change the sheets on a daily basis when we were on the island – and then I realized that she thought that she had lost control of her body.

"Calm down," I laughed lightly, handing her one of the used tissues to examine. "It's just my semen, love – nothing to be embarrassed about."

She took the tissue from me and looked it over for a moment while I cleaned up the rest of the mess. She hesitantly rubbed her thumb on the wetness, and then sighed in utter relief when she recognized the lukewarm, sticky feeling of my fluids. "Nothing else?"

"Nothing," I promised, taking the tissue from her and throwing it into the trash bin with the others. Snuggling back up behind her, I pressed a kiss to her still slightly pink cheek. "I love you."

"I love you too," she sighed happily.

 _Ngh… ooow…_

I gasped, startled by the baby's suddenly uncomfortable thoughts, and sat up on my elbow, leaning over my wife's prone form worriedly.

"What's the matter?" Bella murmured sleepily, gazing up at me in slight worry.

"Are you in pain?" I asked quickly, and I distantly heard Rosalie rushing up the stairs. I let out a low warning growl – low enough that Bella wouldn't be able to hear – and my sister hesitated, resorting to nervously pacing just outside my bedroom door, listening in on every little sound with tightly-spun nerves.

"No," Bella replied to my question, lifting her hand to cup my cheek. "Edward, what's wrong?"

 _No move… no hurt Momma… no move… ow, ow, ow…_

"His legs…" I tried to explain, my heart constricting with worry and love. "He's… he's trying not to move because he knows now that it hurts you when he does…" I trailed off, shaking my head in horror. It was terrible that there could be no peace for an extended period of time – if the baby was fine, Bella wasn't, and if Bella was fine, the baby wasn't. There wouldn't be any peace until the baby was born…

"His legs are cramping," I explained, my voice thick with emotion. "There's so little room now that he's grown so big."

Bella frowned at my words, her eyes shimmering with building tears, and I quickly leaned down to press my lips to hers as her tears spilled over.

"It's going to be okay," I murmured quietly, but I was trying to convince myself of that just as much as I was trying to convince her. Parting my lips from hers, I carefully trailed kisses down the side of her exposed body, down her neck and shoulder, across the outer swell of her breast, down to her swollen and bruised tummy.

"Bella," I said in between laying soft kisses on her belly. "Bella, I think that the baby might be further developed than we previously thought." I looked up at her, and took a deep breath, more worried about my nosy sister's reaction to my next words than my wife's. "I think maybe we should consider delivering him sooner rather than later."

Bella opened her mouth to respond, but didn't have the chance to speak before Rosalie slammed open the door, a snarl ripping from her throat, her expression livid.

"Rosalie!" I admonished in outrage, quickly grabbing the blanket from the foot of the bed to cover mine and Bella's bodies. "What part of the word _privacy_ don't you understand?"

"I know _exactly_ what you're doing, Edward," she hissed, stalking forward to hover over us menacingly. "And I won't let you trick Bella into thinking you have the baby's best interests at heart."

" _Rosalie_ …" I growled, my lips pulling over my teeth in a snarl.

Bella reached for my hand, which was covering her stomach protectively, and she gave it a light squeeze as she looked up at my furious sister and began to speak in a placating tone. "Rose, I trust Edward's judgment – let's just listen to what he has to say before you go jumping up on the defensive."

Rosalie ground her teeth together in frustration, her thoughts emanating discontent, but she relented. Crossing her arms angrily across her chest, she sat on the edge of the bed and glared at me. _Start talking, Doctor_.

Instead of talking right away, I reached over and grabbed Rosalie's hands and pulled them over to Bella's tummy over the thin blanket that was tossed over us, resting one on the underside and the other on the top peak. She resisted my efforts for a moment at first, but relented when she realized that I was allowing her to touch the baby.

"This is his head," I explained softly, patting the hand that was resting on the underside of my wife's belly. With my other hand, I patted the hand that Rosalie had on the top peak. "This is his bottom." Taking my hands away from my sister's, I laid them in the middle of Bella's stomach, spreading my fingers out to cover the remaining space. "His legs and arms are all curled up here. Do you feel how tightly he's compacted? We were going by the inch-a-week method, but that's not always the norm – it depends on the size of the mother and the size of the baby. What if we miscalculated? Bella is small, and he's growing so quickly – he's in pain. Wouldn't it be better to deliver him now than wait for Bella to go into labor? If the stories we've researched have any scrap of truth to them, labor should be something to avoid, for both the baby and Bella's sakes."

Rosalie's expression was beginning to crumble as she realized the truth of my words, and she glanced up at me uncertainly. "Are you _sure_ he'd be okay being delivered now?"

I nodded quickly, taking advantage of the small chink in her armor. "Yes, Rose. He's very clearly developed beyond what we had guessed, and even if he was at the development of thirty-four weeks – like we had thought – it would still be safe to deliver him. The only things we need to worry about are his lungs, but I'm fairly certain that he'll be fine."

"Rose, I think Edward's right," Bella murmured, her cheeks still a little pink from embarrassment at being seen while in a post-coital state. "It really is getting tight in there – it feels like I'm about to split open as it is."

"You're okay with this?" Rosalie asked, eyeing Bella suspiciously. "I mean, you're not agreeing with him because you two just had sex, right?"

I rolled my eyes and Bella's blush flamed up again, but she glared at my sister as she replied in a cold tone. "I would not agree to this if I thought it would put EJ in danger, Rosalie, regardless of anything Edward and I might have just done – which really isn't any of your business anyway."

Rosalie's eyes flashed in fury, but, mercifully, she held her tongue until she grappled control of her emotions again. She looked between Bella and me for a minute or so, debating of whether to be a helper or hinderer. I let out a breath that I didn't even realize I had been holding a second before Rosalie opened her mouth to speak.

"Well," she finally huffed, a bit of temper still in her voice as she turned to glare at me. "You better call Carlisle while he's still out so that he can bring home everything he might need."

"Thank you, Rose," I breathed quietly, hoping that she felt the real gratitude in my words.

Don't _make me regret this, Masen_ , was her only reply to me, her thoughts hard and cold, but just that she was going along with this was showing that she was starting to crack.

Outwardly, my sister simply _harrumphed_ , shook her head once, and then stood up and made a quick escape back downstairs, slamming my bedroom door so hard behind her that the wall of windows on the south side of my bedroom rattled dangerously.

Excited, I shucked the blanket off of us with a flourish, and it fluttered to the floor just as I was slipping back into bed next to Bella, my cell phone in hand. Bella carefully turned over so that she was on her other side, facing and looking up at me as I sat back against the wrought iron headboard and quickly dialed my father's number.

"What if he's still hunting?" Bella asked quietly, gently rubbing my thigh in her anxiousness. She pressed a soft kiss against my hip as she continued speaking, "We shouldn't interrupt – it's not been that long since they all left."

Putting the phone to my ear, I brought my free hand down to tangle my fingers through her hair, the motion soothing us both. At hearing her words, I unconsciously glanced toward the clock on my bedside table, taking in the time, and chuckled. "It's been nearly an hour and a half, Bella – he's probably taking a break, if he's not already finished. He tends to 'eat and run,' if you will, when he's stressed."

She looked surprised and opened her mouth to respond when Carlisle finally answered after five or so rings, and his voice was breathless. I winced as I realized that I should probably listen to Bella a little bit more.

"Sorry," I mumbled into the phone guiltily. "Did I interrupt?"

"No, it's okay," my father panted, and I could hear the edge of bloodlust still swirling in his voice. I swallowed convulsively against the sudden flow of venom as I thought about the fact that I had probably interrupted my father in the middle of a kill. "I just finished – I was distracted. Is everything all right? Is Bella hurt again? Do I need to come home?"

"No, no, everything's fine," I promised, gently massaging Bella's scalp with my fingers while she laid kisses up and down my hip. "I just wanted to discuss something with you. If you want to hunt some more, I'll call back—"

"No, Edward," Carlisle interjected, his voice soft and kind once again. "Like I said, I just finished. Now, what's going on?"

I took a deep breath, trying to figure out what to say, and I looked down, my eyes seeking out Bella's in comfort.

"It's just…" I began nervously. "I think… I think maybe the baby might be further developed than what we had thought."

There was several seconds of tense silence as I waited for him to respond. Finally, he drew in a ragged breath, "The… baby?"

"Yes, Carlisle," I answered patiently, rolling my eyes a little. Bella giggled softly at my expression, pressing her face into my hip. "He's grown so quickly, and the space is getting smaller by the hour. I really think it would be best if we can deliver him sooner rather than later. I mean, what if we wait _too_ long and Bella goes into labor? Isn't that something we want to avoid for Bella and the baby's safety?"

"…He?"

"Carlisle, are you even _listening_ to me?" I growled out in frustration.

"I…" he began haltingly, his voice astonished. "Yes, Edward, I am listening, but – is Bella next to you?"

"Yes, why?" I replied, and I heard him let out a tense breath, the sound not exactly relieved, but more accepting, like he had expected my answer.

"You just surprised me, calling the fetus 'baby' and 'he,'" Carlisle explained, and my heart twisted painfully in my chest, anger and guilt swirling in my stomach as he continued. "But I know it upsets Bella when she hears those phrases, so I was wondering if you were pacifying her if she was near you. How close is Rosalie to you now?"

"She's downstairs."

"Oh," he said in surprise. "Are you and Bella in your room?"

"Yes, but Carlisle, I—" I began, but he cut me off, already in doctor mode.

"I can deliver it whenever Bella is comfortable with it," he said, his voice professional. "I'm assuming you discussed this with her and Rosalie first?"

"Yes, but Carlisle, I don't think you understand—"

"As for what will happen after the delivery, we still need to discuss," he continued, and I knew without actually hearing him that he was completely absorbed in his thoughts, thinking out the process in his head. "I think we can safely say that you'll be changing Bella right after to ensure her survival—"

"Yes, but—"

"—but as for the fetus, we'll have to act quickly. I took the opportunity to speak with Alice and Jasper while we were away from Esme and Emmett, and they've agreed to help as best they can. Alice said she would stay with Rosalie, Esme, and Emmett during the birth to distract them, and Jasper has agreed to take the fetus once it's born and…" he trailed off for a moment, his voice slightly uncomfortable, "take care of it."

" _No_ ," I snarled viciously, and from the few seconds of stunned silence that followed, I knew I had finally broken through his clinical thoughts.

"Edward?" Carlisle asked, his voice wary.

I took a deep breath to calm myself, closing my eyes and concentrating on the feel of Bella's hand on my thigh and her lips on my hip. "I can hear his thoughts."

" _What_?" my father gasped, amazement and intrigue wrapping around his voice.

"It started just a little while after you all left," I explained quickly, my voice thick with emotion. "It was just small noises, and then words and images, and now—" I broke off, a shuddering, overwhelmed breath rattling out of my chest as I moved my hand down from Bella's hair to rub gentle circles on the side of her rounded tummy. "He's so smart, Carlisle, and so loving. He loves us – we were wrong about him, about what he is; so, _so_ wrong. He's perfect."

"Oh, Edward…" my father breathed, his voice thick like mine, amazement, guilt, fear, and every other emotion overwhelming him. "You've fallen in love."

"Yes," I whispered, nodding, though I knew my father couldn't see that. "Loving him was never the issue, though – I never had a choice in that. But I'm… _accepting_ it now, embracing it like I should have in the first place."

I could have sworn that I was able to actually _hear_ Carlisle wince through the phone, or maybe it was just obvious in the tone of his voice as he replied, "I'm so sorry, Edward – I never even considered you're feelings about all of this, especially in the beginning. I was just so worried for Bella, and I just assumed that you would want her to be safe – and you can't deny the stories of the Cambion and Immortal Children were cause for terror; I fear I may have acted quickly and irrationally."

"You were just being a doctor, Carlisle," I spoke quietly. "You were trying to help."

"But I went about it the wrong way, it seems," he sighed.

"We both did."

"I still don't know about this, though," Carlisle admitted, somewhat reluctantly. "We know it—"

"He," I corrected automatically, and Carlisle chuckled weakly.

"Okay, _he_ ," he corrected himself. "We know he's stronger than an average, adult human – even as an unborn infant. We know he has a taste for human blood too…"

"You'll see," I assured him, my voice hopeful and eager. "He's not dangerous – he's so loving, Carlisle. Once he realized that his movements were hurting his mother, he started holding as still as possible, even though not moving causes _him_ pain – which is what brings me back to wanting to deliver him earlier. He's all cramped up in there, and it's hurting him."

"I see," Carlisle hummed, the doctor taking over again. "And you think he's sufficiently developed to survive outside of the womb?"

"I'm sure of it," I promised, my response confident. "I wouldn't risk him _or_ Bella."

Carlisle let out a tense sigh, the uncertainty clearly obvious in the tone. "All right then. The soonest I can be back is tomorrow by noon – I want to be able to have enough donated blood on hand, just in case. Do you think they will be able to hold on for that long?"

"I believe so," I sighed, refusing to allow any sort of uncertainty to creep up on me. "He's incredibly careful now that he realizes how dangerous his movements are, and, of course, Bella will be off of her feet as much as possible."

"Okay then," my father said, resignation in his voice. "The others should be back in a few hours – Esme is coming with me. I guess I'll see you and Bella tomorrow."

"Okay," I murmured quietly, reluctant to say goodbye for some reason. "We'll see you tomorrow."

There was a few seconds of silence where I could still hear my father breathing on the other end. He sighed, and after another few seconds there was a soft _click_ and then he was gone. Swallowing nervously, I brought the phone down from my ear and pressed the _end_ button, staring down at the glowing screen until it faded.

I turned to look down at Bella and couldn't help the smile that curved my lips as I saw that she had fallen asleep. My poor girl; she was so tired, and she'd been fighting it off, but she looked so peaceful now, her head tucked into my hip, her hand resting softly on my thigh. My eyes trailed down her exposed body, coming to rest on my own hand resting on her belly, my thumb rubbing gentle circles on the badly stretched skin.

"Just one more day," I murmured quietly to myself.

Now I just had to make sure Bella and EJ were safe and comfortable until then – but, really, what could happen in twenty-four hours anyway?


	3. Chapter Three: Life

**_To My New Readers:_** This is a repost and finishing of one of my existing stories, which I had taken down a few years ago. I have decided to repost it and finish the tale, as it was originally a short story, anyway (one I really enjoyed, as well). The first four chapters were written quite some time ago, and I have since received a BFA in Creative Writing, so I hope you'll be able to spot the improvement in my writing starting in the fifth chapter.

 ** _To My Long Time Readers:_** Hi! So, um… yeah, I'm not dead! Woohoo! As I said above, I went to college, and have received a BFA in Creative Writing; in the meantime, I did not write much fan fiction at all, not for the lack of desire to do so, but simply because I had no time! I was also in the process of writing my own novel(s), of which I have completed two and am currently in the process of self-publication.

 _This chapter was originally written in 2011._

 **Beautiful Dreamer**

The fading light of day giving way to the oncoming twilight of evening found us back down in the living room a few hours later.

Bella had only slept restfully for about forty-five minutes before she was forced awake by her discomfort of having been in the same position for so long. Unable to fall back into a deep sleep, she had drifted off and jerked awake sporadically for the next half-hour until she had begged me—frustrated tears rolling down her cheeks—to help her back downstairs, so that we could at least relax together, if not sleep.

I'd put up little argument because the baby's discomfort was getting to be a lot too, and I figured if Bella moved around a bit, it might help them by allowing the baby to shift position or move a little without pushing too hard on Bella.

Thankfully, once Bella was in a more upright position, their aches and pains eased marginally, and though I still had to carry Bella down the stairs, she was much happier to be sitting up than lying down.

Rose had put a movie in when we had settled down on the couch— _Titanic_ , I'd noted with a role of my eyes, and Rose had laughed at my expression, knowing how much I disliked that movie—and Bella watched in amusement at my sister's and my playful bickering.

"You only like it because the main character is named 'Rose,'" I teased my sister, unconsciously pressing my lips to the top of Bella's head as she leaned her head against my shoulder.

"So?" Rosalie teased back, a good-natured grin on her lips. "You only _dis_ like it because you're old enough to remember the actual event."

I scrunched my nose in distaste, dim memories coming unbidden of my mother bursting into tears as she read the morning paper and my father patting her on the shoulder, a grim frown on his face. I hadn't understood what all the big fuss was about at the moment, but later Father had taken me into his study to explain to me. The event itself was truly sad, but what made it sadder was that Mary, our cook, had a sister from Scotland who was supposed to arrive on the ill-fated ship. We had waited anxiously for three days for any news concerning the survivors only to have the authorities arrive on our doorstep to inform Mary that her sister hadn't been one of the listed survivors, and she had most likely gone down with the ship.

Somewhere between Jack sketching a naked Rose and their subsequent lovemaking in the cargo hold, I briefly slipped back upstairs and into Carlisle's study, where all of his medical equipment he'd brought home for Bella was. Thinking over the upcoming deaths in the movie had somehow gotten me thinking on the precautions I would need to take while helping Carlisle deliver the baby. Once the baby was out and safe, it was silently understood that I was to commence Bella's change.

My first and foremost worry was not that I would be overwhelmed with the taste of my wife's blood, but whether changing Bella would completely shatter whatever small remnant of hope we still had with the Quileute community.

It was something I would definitely need to speak to Jacob about once he was back—though the poor boy was on the verge of a mental breakdown already, and I had no idea how the news that Bella would be delivered and changed much sooner than anticipated would affect him. But, really, he was the only one that had any right to consent to my wishes, in my mind. Sam wasn't the rightful leader—Jacob was; I could only hope that I could convince Jacob of that.

But if he didn't agree… well, I'd found a loophole. I very much doubted either of the packs would be willing to go along with it, but it was worth a shot.

The treaty strictly said that we weren't to ever _bite_ a human again. But what if I didn't change her by biting her? I wouldn't be breaking the treaty, because the treaty said absolutely nothing about _changing_ a human, just _biting_ one. The real meaning behind the wording was clearly obvious, but it wasn't specified.

 _Get it in writing next time, boys_ , I thought to myself in grim amusement as I concentrated momentarily on my thirst and let the venom seep down my tongue, into the strong, steel syringe in my hand.

I quietly slipped back downstairs and resumed my place at Bella's side just as the ship hit the iceberg, and Bella leaned against me, wrapping her arms around my chest and squeezing lightly. As I softly caressed her sore back, she fell back into a fitful sleep against my shoulder a few minutes later.

Rosalie—in a rare show of selflessness—offered to change the movie when she realized Bella was sound asleep against me, but I declined as it was nearly over anyway.

When they were hanging from the bow of the ship as they waited for it to sink, I heard Jasper and Alice racing up the driveway, their minds—for once—the complete opposite of each other's. Apparently, Carlisle had somehow told them of the new events that had arisen.

Jasper, for the most part, was relieved and even somewhat happy when he registered the peace and happiness pulsing from all of us once he was within range of the house. There was still the undercurrent of worry and fear laced throughout all of us, but mostly there was just a new sense of _positivity_ that my brother couldn't help but drink up.

His wife, on the other hand, was beyond furious.

Alice didn't understand how I could suddenly be embracing the thing that was killing my wife, _her best friend_ —as she reminded me heatedly in her thoughts amid a barrage of curses and foul names directed at me—even if said 'thing' was 'pretending' to care for its mother. In Alice's mind, the baby was a monster who would destroy the happy future that she had once seen; she was incredibly bitter that mine and Bella's little one had completely muddled up her visions for the time being.

"Alice—" I sighed quietly, trying to explain to her in a gentle tone, but she cut me off angrily with a rude hand gesture and then proceeded to stomp up the stairs to hide away in her room.

Jasper glanced helplessly between me and the stairs, not sure whether to apologize for Alice or just go comfort her on his own.

"Where's Em?" Rosalie asked, ending our brother's dilemma, and he smiled slightly as he came to sit down on the far side of the couch, next to Bella, careful to keep a bit of distance between them.

"He decided to stay behind and help Carlisle and Esme," Jasper explained, smiling apologetically at Rosalie. "I think the stress was really starting to get to him."

"Oh," Rosalie breathed in response, frowning softly and nodding in understanding.

"Carlisle managed to acquire a bit more blood that he sent back with us," Jasper said, turning back to me. "I put it in the fridge."

"Thanks," I sighed, relieved as I eyed the empty Styrofoam cup on the coffee table. "We'll need it."

"Where's Jacob?" Jasper asked suddenly, noting the distinct lack of the angst-ridden teen in the vicinity.

"He stepped out for a while," I replied, my voice soft.

Jasper frowned, glancing between me and my sleeping wife worriedly. _Was there a conflict between you?_

"No, Jazz," I assured him with a soft smile. "The stress was getting to him too, so he went for a drive to cool off. He'll be back."

"At least _someone_ has their priorities right," Alice's voice snarled from upstairs, and I bit my tongue against an infuriated growl, glaring up at the ceiling.

"Alice is just worried," Jasper jumped in, quickly dissipating the mounting angers and frustrations emanating from me and his wife. "She still can't see clearly, and it's making her nervous, that's all."

"Everything is going to be fine," I said firmly, and Jasper smiled widely at the positive confidence rolling off of me. Suddenly, he grimaced and glanced over his shoulder toward the window behind the couch at the same time that the familiar sound of the Vanquish's engine came barreling up the road before barely slowing to turn violently up the drive.

Jasper smiled apologetically at me before standing and silently heading for the stairs, the angst and depression rolling off of the quickly approaching teen werewolf already too much for my emotion-sensitive brother. I sighed, gently sliding out from underneath my wife and repositioning her sleeping form comfortably back against the couch.

Rosalie quickly took my place next to Bella as I stood up, and I rolled my eyes playfully at her before turning resolutely in the direction of the garage to wait for Jacob's return.

 _Well, at least he didn't crash it_ , I thought in relief as my perfectly intact car came up the drive, really much faster than was necessary. I cringed, biting my lip anxiously, as the brakes protested loudly when Jacob engaged them fast and hard, skidding to a rough stop not half an inch from the bumper of the tarp-covered Ferrari. I wasn't sure whether I should be more upset over how roughly he had treated my most prized car or over the fact that he had nearly crashed it into Bella's birthday present.

Letting it go, I called out to him as he reluctantly cut the engine and unfolded himself from the car. "A few things, Jacob."

"Thanks for the loan," he grumbled after a few moments of recollecting his short-fuse temper. He tossed my keys back to me, his thoughts bitter. _Guess it's gonna have to be repaid, huh_? "What do you want _now_?"

"Firstly…" I sighed, giving him a slight apologetic smile. "I know how averse you are to using your authority with your pack, but…" I trailed off, not quite certain how to continue. On the one hand, I really didn't think Leah would bother with any of us again after her temper tantrum, but on the off chance that she even thought of starting up again… well, I knew Jacob would understand my concerns and wouldn't let it happen again, even if he had to pull rank on the girl.

He blinked down at me in astonishment, not expecting my words. "What?"

I hesitated for just half a second, not wanting to offend the boy, but wanting to make my point perfectly clear as well. "If you can't or won't control Leah, then I—"

"Leah?" he growled out, shocked and angry at our winding conversation. "What happened?"

I felt my expression harden in anger as I recalled the events of the afternoon, Leah screaming death wishes at my wife and unborn child, and my voice was cold as I explained. "She came up to see why you'd left so abruptly. I tried to explain. I suppose it might not have come out right."

"What did she do?" he replied, his eyes wide in astonishment as he considered the fact that Leah had confronted us on his behalf.

"She phased to her human form and—"

"Really?" he interrupted again, shock and a bit of pride evident in his voice. _Leah? Really? Letting her guard down like that in a house full of vamps?_

I considered telling him she had done it _naked_ too, but ultimately decided that that was an irrelevant—if not inappropriate—fact. Plus, I really didn't want to see the visual in Jacob's head if I told him. "She wanted to… _speak_ to Bella."

"To _Bella_?" he repeated, and I rolled my eyes at the stupid undertone of pride in his voice. This was _nothing_ to be proud of her for.

"I won't let Bella be upset like that again," I growled out, unable to keep the menacing fury out of my voice. Just the memory of Bella's hysterical sobbing and guilt after Leah's tirade was enough to make me want to kill something. Of course, that could also be because I was unbearably thirsty as well. "I don't care how justified Leah thinks she is! I didn't hurt her—of course I wouldn't—" I added quickly as he mentally questioned the truth in my statement, "—but I'll throw her out of the house if it happens again. I'll launch her right across the river—"

"Hold _on_ ," he interrupted, holding his hands up to signal me to slow down my _hissy fit_ , as he called it. "What did she _say_?"

I took a deep breath, attempting to calm my temper and explain calmly. "Leah was unnecessarily harsh. I'm not going to pretend that I understand why Bella is unable to let go of you," I confided, my heart wrenching at the knowledge—and even worse, the knowledge that she was just as confused about it as the rest of us, and the resulting guilt, "but I do know that she does not behave this way to hurt you. She suffers a great deal over the pain she's inflicting on you, and on me, by asking you to stay. What Leah said was uncalled for. Bella's been crying—"

"Wait—" he interrupted me, _yet again_. I was slightly tempted to ask him if he had ever been diagnosed with ADD. "Leah was yelling at Bella about _me_?"

I gave him a sharp nod, my teeth grounding together in barely suppressed fury. "You were quite vehemently championed."

 _Woah_. "I didn't ask her to do that," he said quickly, as if he thought that that's what I thought he had done.

"I know," I replied, my voice soft. I knew he would never ask her to do something like that. He was perfectly capable of telling people what's what on his own.

He rolled his eyes, ignoring the kindness that had been in my words. _You just know everything, don't you_? There was a tense silence for a minute or so as he considered what I had told him, and then he heaved an exhausted sigh, smirking and shaking his head a little as he spoke. "I can't promise to control Leah. I won't do that. But I'll talk to her, okay? And I don't think there'll be a repeat. Leah's not one to hold back, so she probably got it all off her chest today."

"I would say so," I agreed darkly.

"Anyway, I'll talk to Bella about it, too. She doesn't need to feel bad. This one's on me."

"I already told her that," I smirked.

He rolled his eyes again. "Of course you did. Is she okay?"

"She's sleeping now," I explained, my voice warming as I thought of my wife inside. "Rose is with her."

 _Ugh,_ he visibly stiffened as he registered that I was back on a nickname basis with my "psycho" sister. _He's completely crossed over to the dark side_.

I rolled my eyes, and bit my tongue against a smart comeback, choosing to be the adult that I really am and ignore his petty comments—verbal or mental. "She's… better in some ways. Aside from Leah's tirade and the resulting guilt."

 _Better_ , he mentally scoffed. _Because he can hear the monster now and everything's lovey-dovey again. Fan-fucking-tastic_.

"It's a bit more than that," I murmured, unable to simply ignore his thoughts. If he would just _listen_ and try to understand, he would see how wrong we had been—how wrong _I_ had been. This baby _wasn't_ a monster, but a beautiful gift. "Now that I can make out the child's thoughts, it's apparent that he or she has remarkably developed mental facilities. He can understand us, to an extent."

Jacob's jaw dropped, momentarily shocked again. "Are you _serious_?"

"Yes." I couldn't help the small smile that alighted on my face as I explained, paternal pride welling up in my chest. "He seems to have a vague sense of what hurts her now. He's trying to avoid that, as much as possible. He… _loves_ her. Already." _And me_ , I added in my head, my heart swelling with joy, but I didn't think Jacob would care about the latter.

Jacob stared at me, his eyes wide in disbelief, though there was an odd glimmer in his eyes as he realized that the baby's love for his mother was what had been the changing factor in my attitude. And, admittedly, that was part of it, but not the entire reason. I was also just as much in love with this child as Bella was and as the baby was with us. We were going to be a family, but I knew Jacob wouldn't listen to any further explanation on that front, so I didn't even bother to try.

Besides, the next bit we needed to talk about was going to be the difficult part, and I decided to go in while he was slightly distracted. I hoped that his obvious undiagnosed ADD would make it so that he would just agree with me without really thinking about it.

I hurried on, smoothly blending the next topic into the previous conversation, acting as if we were simply talking about the weather. "The progress, I believe, is more than we'd judged. When Carlisle returns—"

"They're not back?" Yup. ADD—I was sure of it. Maybe after all of this was over, I could ask Carlisle to give the boy a Ritalin prescription.

"Alice and Jasper are," I explained calmly as I watched his thoughts flicker to Sam and Jared, who he had seen stalking the road. "Carlisle sent all the blood he was able to acquire, but it wasn't as much as he was hoping for—Bella will use up this supply in another day the way her appetite has grown. Carlisle stayed to try another source. I don't think that's necessary now, but he wants to be covered for any eventuality."

"Why isn't it necessary?" he asked suspiciously, and I cursed my luck. Okay, so maybe it was only a _mild_ case of ADD then. "If she needs more?"

I eyed him carefully as I spoke, noting each and every reaction he could have to what I was about to say. "I'm trying to persuade Carlisle to deliver the baby as soon as he is back."

" _What_?"

"The child seems to be attempting to avoid rough movements," I explained quickly, my voice slightly pleading as I tried to get him to understand, "but it's difficult. He's become too big. It's madness to wait, when he's clearly developed beyond what Carlisle had guessed. Bella's too fragile to delay."

Jacob staggered, stumbling back a step, his breath hitching in shock and pain. His faced paled dramatically, and I briefly worried that he would faint on me, but I waited, letting him collect himself again.

"You think she's going to make it," he stated, not asked, his eyes widening as he saw the confidence in my expression.

"Yes," I nodded, bracing myself for the next—most difficult—part of this conversation. "That was the other thing I wanted to talk to you about."

I waited for him to respond, but he just stared at me, his breath still hitching every now and then. After a minute, I surmised that he wasn't going to comment and took the rare moments of silence from him as time to explain the situation further.

"Yes," I sighed, watching him closely with every word I spoke. "Waiting, as we have been, for the child to be ready, that was insanely dangerous. At any moment it could have been too late. But if we're proactive about this, if we act quickly, I see no reason why it should not go well. Knowing the child's mind is unbelievably helpful. Thankfully, Bella and Rose agree with me. Now that I've convinced them it's safe for the child if we proceed, there's nothing to keep this from working."

"When will Carlisle be back?" he whispered, his eyes still wide. I was really starting to worry that this whole conversation would be the poor boy's breaking point.

"By noon tomorrow."

The boy fell back, his knees going weak, and he had to catch himself on the car to keep from falling to the floor. Automatically, I reached out to him, trying to help him, but dropped them after just a few seconds, knowing he would never accept any kind of help or support from me.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, my voice thick with emotion. I wished more than anything that it didn't have to be this painful for him. He may _look_ like a mature adult, but the truth of the matter was that he was still very much just a seventeen-year-old boy—he should be hanging out with his friends and talking about girls and trying out for the football team, not dealing with his best friend's dangerous pregnancy and all the drama that went along with it. "I am truly sorry for the pain this causes you, Jacob. Though you hate me, I must admit that I don't feel the same about you. I think of you as a…" I hesitated for a moment, swallowing back my pride. Emmett would never let me live this down, if he were here to witness this "unmanly" display of my emotions. "… a brother in many ways. A comrade in arms, at the very least. I regret your suffering more than you realize." Getting back on track, I felt my face morph into a fierce expression, my determination filling my chest as I continued. "But Bella _is_ going to survive, and I know that's what really matters to you."

I smiled apologetically at him before pushing on, barely giving him the time to process all that I was saying. "So I hate to do this now, while you're already dealing with too much, but, clearly, there is little time. I have to ask you for something—to beg, if I must."

"I don't have anything left," he choked out, his voice weak and breaking with grief.

My heart wrenched in my chest, truly feeling terrible for having to put him under this kind of pressure when he was already so close to breaking down completely. I lifted my hand slightly, wanting to comfort him somehow, but, again, I didn't think he would appreciate it, so I let it drop again, continuing on quietly.

"I know how much you have given," I replied, my voice soft and grateful. "But this is something you _do_ have, and only you. I'm asking this of the true Alpha, Jacob. I'm asking this of Ephraim's heir." I gave him a moment to interject, but it seemed that the shock and despair had miraculously cured his ADD, and so I trudged on, my voice begging of him.

"I want your permission to deviate from what we agreed to in our treaty with Ephraim. I want you to grant us an exception. I want your permission to save her life. You know I'll do it anyway, but I don't want to break faith with you if there is any way to avoid it. We never intended to go back on our word, and we don't do it lightly now. I want your understanding, Jacob, because you know exactly why we do this. I want the alliance between our families to survive when this is over."

 _Sam_ , he thought to me, unable to bring himself to speak. _It's Sam you want._

"No," I pled, silently begging him to let go of this ridiculous modesty he held onto and step up to the position. "Sam's authority is assumed. It belongs to you. You'll never take it from him, but no one can rightfully agree to what I'm asking except for _you_."

 _It's not my decision_ , he replied, not wanting to have to make this life-changing decision.

 _If you want to be an adult, Jacob, you're going to have to make difficult decisions_ , I thought to myself before replying verbally. "It is, Jacob, and you know it. Your word on this will condemn us or absolve us. Only you can give this to me."

 _I can't think. I don't know_.

"We don't have much time," I urged him quietly, glancing anxiously back at the house as if I could see through the walls to where my whole world lay resting.

 _I don't know. Let me think. Just give me a minute here, okay_? he silently begged me, his mind frantic.

"Yes," I agreed reluctantly, but I knew that I couldn't push him, or he would completely crack and just run off like he had when I sent him the wedding invitation.

Jacob silently pushed past me, walking back toward the house, and, after a moment of hesitation, I followed closely behind. I almost laughed out loud as the poor boy's wretched ADD made a quick comeback, his mind quickly becoming distracted as he considered how bad I smelled to him and how okay he suddenly was with it.

 _Edward! Jake!_

I slowed to a stop at the same time that Seth came bumbling out of the bushes that he had been waiting behind. He had wanted to greet Jacob right away, but had politely waited out of earshot when he had realized that Jacob and I were about to have a serious conversation. He knew he would most likely get the entire story later from Jacob, but out of politeness and respect for us, he had walked away, letting us have our privacy.

I really loved that kid.

Jacob stopped and smiled weakly up at his gigantic wolf-brother. "Hey, kid."

Seth bent his head toward Jacob affectionately. _Is everything okay? You looked really upset earlier—Leah and I were worried…_

"S'all cool," Jacob sighed, lying as he patted the giant wolf on the shoulder reassuringly. "I'll tell you about it later. Sorry to take off on you like that."

It amazed me how well the wolves could read each other's body language even when they couldn't read each other's thoughts. Bella was extraordinarily good at reading their body language too, but then again, Bella was good at reading body language, period. She could nearly always tell when I was keeping something from her, even if she didn't say anything about it.

A wolfish grin spread across Seth's broad muzzle. _It's okay—we knew you'd come back. You would have felt guilty about the car._ I stifled a small laugh and pressed my lips together tightly to prevent the smirk from spreading across my face.

"Hey, tell your sister to back off now, okay? Enough."

Seth nodded, internally cringing as he directed his thoughts momentarily at me. _I'm so sorry about that, Edward. Leah never should'a done that—it was really inappropriate of her, and I've already told her so. She has a thing for Jake, you know. Nothing big, but… Still, that's no excuse for how she acted, and I told her that_.

"Thank you," I murmured quietly, and he gave me a toothy grin as Jacob gently pushed on his shoulder.

"Get back to work," Jacob advised Seth, false cheer in his voice. "I'll spell you in a bit."

Seth gave Jacob an affection shove with his own shoulder, and then turned and quickly galloped back off into the darkening forest.

"He has one of the purest, sincerest, _kindest_ minds I've ever heard," I murmured quietly. If I hadn't worked so hard to get Angela Webber and Ben Cheney together, I would have suggested Seth and Ang meet sometime. Even so, I had a feeling that nothing would come of it _—_ Ang and Ben were incredibly suited for each other, and were very much in love. But still, I knew Seth would find someone someday, and that made me feel better. "You're lucky to have his thoughts to share."

"I know that," Jacob grunted, almost like my words had offended him. I cocked my eyebrow at him, silently waiting for an elaboration, but he ignored me, and turned back toward the house.

Suddenly, the distinct sound of a straw being sucked through was heard, and I quickly dashed past Jacob, and into the house.

"Bella, love," I sighed as I kneeled on the floor next to her as she lay on the couch, leaning forward to press a kiss to her forehead as she sucked deeply on her cup of blood. "I thought you were sleeping. I'm sorry, I wouldn't have left."

"Don't worry," she assured me with a smile, one of her hands moving to cover mine on her belly. "I just got so thirsty _—_ it woke me up. It's a good thing Carlisle is bringing more," she teased, glancing over at Rosalie who had most likely told her what all was happening when Bella had woken up to find me gone. "This kid is going to need it when he gets out of me."

"True," I nodded, chuckling. "That's a good point."

"I wonder if he'll want anything else," she mused aloud, cocking her head slightly to the side, looking at me as if I knew the answer.

Well, I didn't know if he would _want_ anything else, but, truthfully, we _needed_ everything. None of us had been planning for something like this to happen, and none of us had really done anything to prepare for it since we found out. Our main priorities had always been Bella and the baby's health and safety. We didn't even have diapers.

I made a mental note to do some online shopping tonight while Bella slept.

"I suppose we'll find out," I said, smiling up at her as I leant down to press my lips to her bulging belly button.

"Finally," Alice sighed, her voice gruff with pain and anger, and I turned just in time to see her dart from the space under the stairs to hover close to Jacob as he walked into the room. He gave a her a small grin before turning back to stare at Bella, and it surprised me that Jacob was suddenly so at ease with my family; even Alice, who, if she had been any closer, would have been perched right on top of him.

Bella looked up from gazing at our hands on her belly to follow my gaze, and her eyes locked with Jacob's. Automatically, a wide smile stretched across her lips, but then it dropped just as quickly, her bottom lip trembling slightly as she tried to hold in her tears.

 _I'm gonna punch Leah right in her stupid mouth_ , Jacob grumbled in his head, and if I didn't know any better, the malice in his thoughts would have had me convinced that he would actually do it. "Hey, Bells. How ya doing?"

"I'm fine," she said, staring through his attempt at cheeriness, her frown deepening.

"Big day today, huh? Lots of new stuff."

 _Jesus, Jacob, she's not four_ , I chastised mentally, rolling my eyes a little.

"You don't have to do that, Jacob," Bella said, her voice thickening emotionally, and I rubbed soothing circles on the back of her hand with my thumb.

"Don't know what you're talking about," he replied, deciding to still play dumb and going to sit on the arm rest by her head.

She glared at him, not appreciating the dumb game. Bella sucked in a deep breath, and put on her I'm-Going-To-Attempt-To-Apologize face. Jacob knew it just as well as I did, and reacted before she could finish the sentence. "I'm _so_ s _—_ "

Bella complained as Jacob pinched her lips shut, but the boy just shook his head at her. "You can talk when you're not being stupid."

I bit my tongue against a reflexive growl when he called her "stupid." Bella was _not_ unintelligent in any way. It made me angrier when she simply acknowledged his request as if she agreed with him. If it took me all of eternity, I would prove to that girl just how amazing, beautiful, and smart she really was.

"Sorry!" Bella said quickly, her voice teasing as Jacob pulled his hand from her mouth.

I rolled my eyes and glared at the floor as Jacob took in Bella's radiant smile and grinned back at her half-heartedly. In his thoughts, I saw the park that he had gone to earlier in the day, trying to force himself to imprint on any of the girls he saw. Every little thing had reminded him of Bella.

Inevitably, his thoughts brought him back to the conversation we'd had outside, and I listened with bated breath as he warred within himself, weighing the options and alternatives.

 _Fine!_ He sighed in utter defeat, and I looked up at him, not making a sound, lest he change his mind. _Go ahead. Save her. As Ephraim's heir, you have my permission, my word, that this will not violate the treaty. The others will just have to blame me. You were right—they can't deny that it's my right to agree to this_.

"Thank you," I breathed out quietly, my heart feeling like a giant weight had been lifted off of it. My voice was so fervent and filled with gratitude that Rosalie and Alice both turned to gaze at me curiously, though the latter turned back to staring angrily at the wall after just a second.

"So," Bella asked, completely oblivious to what had just happened. "How was your day?"

"Great," Jacob replied, trying his hardest, poor thing, to sound like he really meant what he was saying. "Went for a drive. Hung out in the park."

"Sounds nice."

"Sure, sure."

"Uh-oh," Bella mumbled quietly, and when I looked up at her, I had to bite back a little laugh as her face scrunched up in an uncomfortable pout. Turning to my sister with a light blush, she asked tentatively, "Rose?"

Rosalie laughed, rolling her eyes. "Again?" _Good Lord, she just went when she woke up!_

"I think I've drunk two gallons in the last hour," Bella admitted, still blushing.

Jacob and I moved to stand up and out of the way as Rosalie came over to carry Bella back to the bathroom. I'd offered to help her with that part, thinking she might be less embarrassed, but apparently the thought only made her _more_ flustered.

"It's so embarrassing, Edward!" Bella had complained, pushing her blushing face into my chest.

"Bella," I had laughed, not quite understanding what she had to be embarrassed about. "I've seen every bit of your naked body, love _—_ what difference does it make?"

"Because seeing me naked while we make love is different than seeing me naked while I'm doing, well… _that_."

I hadn't bothered arguing with her on it, and I hadn't offered since, though I really didn't see what the big deal was. It actually made _me_ uncomfortable to imagine someone else with her in any situation that involved her in some state of nakedness, even if it was my own sister.

But Bella was more comfortable with one of the girls with her for bathroom trips, and I didn't want to upset her, so I let the subject drop. I had made it clear to her, however, that after the baby was born, and she was well again, I planned on claiming her body for my own again _very thoroughly_.

"Can I walk?" Bella asked, breaking me out of my thoughts, her face uncomfortable as she rested awkwardly in Rosalie's arms. "My legs are so stiff."

"Are you sure?" I asked in concern, worried the weight on her weak legs might be too much for her. The baby was also very quiet, and I wondered again if he could be sleeping. I didn't want a sudden shift in position to startle him accidently.

"Rose'll catch me if I trip over my feet," Bella assured me quickly, and I could see the distinct discomfort in her eyes despite her cheerful expression. "Which could happen pretty easily, since I can't see them."

Rosalie carefully put Bella down on her feet, keeping her hands on my wife's shoulders, lest her legs give out or her clumsiness kicked in.

Bella sighed in delight, stretching her arms in front of herself, stretching her stiff muscles and joints with a few soft pops and a wince.

"That feels good," she sighed, and then looked down at her stomach and laughed a little. "Ugh, but I'm huge."

I couldn't help the laugh that escaped me. She really was quite big, but also very cute.

Bella smiled at me and then back down at her stomach, patting the side affectionately. "One more day."

I tensed automatically at her words, my smile faltering a little. As much confidence as I had gained in just the few hours alone, I was also very scared. Of course, Jacob's negative thoughts were enough to get anyone to start worrying again.

But it would be okay _—_ just one more day, and I would have a little son or daughter to cuddle to my chest and murmur my love to while we waited for Bella to wake from the transformation and make our perfect, little family complete.

Of course, I knew that not everything would be butterflies and rainbows _—_ especially with the child's fast growth rate, which, I was fairly positive, would not slow to that of a normal infant just because he would be out of his mother's womb _—_ but we had a positive outlook now, and that made all the difference.

I should have known that I would end up speaking _—_ or, rather, _thinking—_ too soon.

"All righty, then," Bella sighed taking a step toward the hall with Rosalie hovering next to her, her arms outstretched to offer help if Bella needed it. "Whoops _—_ oh no!"

It all seemed to happen in slow motion after that.

As Bella stepped forward, her leg brushed against the sofa cushion, and the movement jolted the cup of blood that she had set down, and it toppled over, the crimson liquid spilling out over the white cloth.

Rosalie, Jacob, and I all reached out to catch it before it caused any more damage. Suddenly, there was a strange sound coming from Bella, almost like something being ripped apart, though it was muffled and distorted.

Quickly, I whipped my head around to stare at my wife, my eyes wide as I realized that she had reached out for the cup too, but now she was frozen in a half bent-over position, her face quickly twisting from confusion to pain to sick.

"Oh!" she gasped, her hands falling limply from the air to momentarily drop to her belly.

I saw the consciousness start to leave her eyes, and I moved toward her, ready to catch her, but Rosalie was there before me, cradling Bella in her arms before she could hit the floor.

"Bella?" I gasped, silently begging her to open her eyes and tell me that she was fine.

Even before the last syllable of her name left my lips, someone else's thoughts were unconsciously bombarding me, a series of unclear images and words being shouted out in rapid succession.

Darkness, liquid, struggling, no room, pain, tightness, struggling, struggling… to breathe!

 _Nooooooooo!... help… hurt… neck… help, hel…_

"No!" I snarled, panic and fear drenching every molecule of my being.

A half-second later, Bella let out a blood-curdling scream, her body arching up out of Rosalie's arms. The horrifying scream suddenly broke off with a sick gurgling, and her eyes rolled into the back of her head. Her whole body gave a violent twitch, arching up in Rosalie's arms again. I watched in absolute horror as dark, crimson blood bubbled out of her mouth in such copious amounts that _—_ if I didn't know that this wasn't her own blood _—_ I would have been utterly convinced that she was going to bleed to death in a matter of seconds.

Thankfully, I could smell that it was just the donated blood that she had ingested, though that didn't make me feel any better.

Suddenly, Bella's body began to twitch and jerk erratically, and for a moment I thought she was having a seizure of some kind, but then the distinct sounds of bones being broken was clearly heard with each spasm of her body.

The child was trying to get out.

It was Carlisle's horror stories playing out right in front of my eyes.

"We have to do the delivery _now_!" Rosalie shouted at me, breaking me out of my haze, and I nodded sharply.

Rosalie grabbed Bella up in her arms and dashed up the stairs, and I was right behind her. Thankfully, everything that we had on hand was already set up in Carlisle's study, and my sister quickly placed Bella down onto the metal medical table, and then she turned toward the tray of syringes, hesitating for a moment, not sure which medicine to use.

"Morphine!" I growled impatiently.

"Alice _—_ get Carlisle on the phone!" Rosalie yelled while she quickly filled a syringe with the morphine and then flung it at me.

While Rosalie pinned Bella's flopping body down and ripped her clothes off, I carefully took my wife's arm, and stuck the syringe into the inner crease of her elbow, careful to make sure I hit the vein and not just muscle. In the back of my head, I was slightly aware of the others in the house. Jasper was in his room, doing his best to fill the house with calm to no avail; he dare not risk coming any closer lest he lose control. Alice was downstairs, talking rapidly to Carlisle on the phone, explaining the situation.

Jacob was just standing in the doorway, watching the proceedings in horror and disgust. I would have killed him right then and there when his mind briefly went to some of the fantasies he had about Bella when he saw her naked body, if I wasn't so concentrated on trying to save my whole world.

"What's _happening_ , Edward?" Jacob shouted at me.

"He's suffocating!" I shouted back, my nerves on end. _No, no! It wasn't supposed to happen like this! Not like this, please…_

"The placenta must have detached!" Rosalie gasped, putting together the ripping noise from before with what had suddenly started happening right after.

"Get him OUT!" Bella suddenly screamed, and I gasped and gently squeezed her hand as I realized that she had awoken again. "He can't BREATHE! Do it NOW!"

"The morphine—" I started to explain, my voice a low growl with anxiety. It would only take just a couple more minutes for the medicine to spread…

"NO! NOW _—_!" she broke off as another gush of blood bubbled up her throat, and I quickly tilted her head up and stuck my fingers into her mouth, trying desperately to clear the blood away so that she didn't have a chance to aspirate any of it and choke more than she already was.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Alice dart into the room and clip an earpiece onto Rosalie's ear, and then she backed away slowly, her eyes wide as she took in the scene before her and pushed the images violently back at me.

 _You see, Edward? Do you see what this monster has done?_

" _Get out_ ," I snarled at her, curling my body protectively around Bella's, cutting off Alice's view of the carnage she was concentrating on. She sneered at me in disgust, calling me every foul name in the book, and then was gone.

Looking back down at Bella, I noticed that she had fallen unconscious again, but she was still choking and vomiting. Suddenly, I caught a glint of silver out of the corner of my eye, and I turned to see Rosalie approaching Bella's stomach with a scalpel in hand, her eyes and thoughts intent on the _baby_.

"Let the morphine spread!" I shouted at her angrily. It just needed another minute…

"There's no time!" she hissed back at me, her black eyes glinting dangerously. _I knew you didn't really care for the baby—I knew you were just playing Bella! You're just waiting for him to die!_ "He's dying!"

I hissed back at her, my fury rising, but I didn't move to stop her as she brought the knife down to Bella's bulging stomach. Of _course_ I wanted what was best for the baby; I didn't want him to die! But I didn't want Bella in anymore unnecessary pain either _—_ it would only take a little more time for the morphine to completely spread throughout my wife's body.

I was broken out of my thoughts as the scalpel slid across Bella's bulging belly, and then the most wonderful scent in the world filled the room. I could feel the copious amounts of venom welling up in my mouth, the hideous, torturous burn in my throat, and the deep, nearly impossible to resist, desire filling my head, making my muscles tense. Thick, red liquid gushed in heavy spurts from the cut, spilling across my wife's body and dripping to the floor, staining the carpet.

And if I hadn't been so practiced with Bella, so careful, and if I didn't know what it would do to me to lose her, I would have sprung. I would have drained her dry in an instant.

But I was able to keep my head. I didn't even have to stop breathing. This was my wife _—_ my wife _and my child_. I would never do anything to put them in danger, if it was in my power to prevent it.

Unfortunately, Rosalie couldn't say the same. The girl really did have impeccable control _—_ but for one moment, just one, immeasurable moment, she lost focus and let her desperate thirst take control of her.

Still trying to keep Bella propped up so that she could breathe, I could do no more than watch in horror as my sister's lips curled over her teeth in a snarl and she started to lunge forward, her teeth bared. "No, Rose!"

Suddenly, Jacob was flinging himself at my sister, knocking her to the ground with a huge _bang_. There was a sudden scent of new blood being spilled, and for a terrifying second, I thought Rosalie must have bitten Jacob. Still trying to help Bella, I could only watch as the fight continued for no more than a few seconds and then Alice was back, grabbing Rosalie and dragging her out the door. As Jacob stood up, I let out a sigh of relief _—_ he'd been stabbed with the scalpel, not bitten, thank heaven.

 _Enough is enough_ , I thought determinately, a new sense of control gripping me. "Alice, get her out of here! Take her to Jasper and _keep_ her there!" _You're not stealing everything away from me, you vicious hag_. "Jacob, I need you!"

The boy rushed to my side, his expression hard as his gaze landed on Bella's face. Her lips were starting to turn blue, and if we couldn't hear her heartbeat, we would have thought she was already gone from us.

"CPR?" I growled at him, praying to God that he knew the procedure.

"Yes!"

"Get her breathing!" I demanded. "I've got to get him out before _—_ "

I broke off as another loud crack erupted from Bella's body, the loudest break yet, and Jacob and I both froze, staring down at Bella's face, waiting for her to scream in response to the pain. But there was nothing, and then her legs, which had been curled up in pain, fell limply in an awkward position. A moment later, the scent of urine permeated the air, and my heart lurched in terror as I realized what had happened.

"Her spine…" I choked out, staring down at her in horror.

"Get it _out_ of her!" Jacob snarled, throwing the scalpel at me, and I caught it reflexively. "She won't feel anything now!"

He bent down to press his lips to hers, and then blew into her mouth, pushing the air down into her lungs. Her chest expanded with the breath.

Confident that Jacob knew what he was doing and that Bella was in good hands, I brought the scalpel back down to her belly and quickly finished the incision that Rosalie had started. When the cut was wide enough, I threw the scalpel to the floor and spread the flesh and muscle apart with my hands, making a big enough opening that I could clearly see Bella's twitching and squirming uterus.

Forcing myself not to think about what I was about to do, I bent over my wife's prone form and pressed my face down into the bloody gash. Pushing my hands in further, I pressed down on the squirming bundle, trying to still the movements a little so that I didn't cut the child with my teeth as I carefully bit the flesh open. I tried to keep control of my venom so that the flesh that I had just opened wouldn't heal over again, but it was difficult.

Finally, I managed to make another opening, and I quickly pulled it back with my fingers to reveal the amniotic sac – the thick, vampire-skin-like encasing that was the real reason for having to use my teeth.

Quickly, and as carefully as I could, I bit into the encasing, pulling and ripping with my fingers as I bit the opening wider and wider. The screeching, metallic sound the skin made as it was pulled apart sent chills up and down my spine, and the baby's struggles renewed, though I could sense that he was getting weaker and weaker as the seconds passed.

 _Don't you dare!_ I scolded him in my head, as I struggled to tear the flesh that was trapping him apart. _Not after everything we've put Momma through! Don't you dare give up, Edward Jacob! Just hang on a little longer_ …

With one last bone-chilling screech the sac mercifully gave out, tearing open wide under my strength. I gasped, accidently inhaling a mouthful of blood and amniotic fluid, but I paid it little mind as I quickly plunged my hands down into the opening, grasping the hot, wet, squirming, little thing in my hands.

With a loud, wet, squelching sound, I tugged upward, and the baby was out of his mother's body and cradled in my arms. I immediately saw why he was having such a difficult time breathing and gathered that this must have been why the placenta detached as well.

The umbilical cord was wrapped tightly several times around the baby's neck, causing the length of the cord to the placenta to become very short. When Bella had bent one way, the baby moved in the opposite direction, trying not to be squished. The cord must have tightened and pulled on the placenta, causing it to be pulled from the uterine wall, and cutting off the baby's airway at the same time.

Quickly, I slipped my fingers under the tight loops of cord and tugged them over the baby's head. Bringing him up to my shoulder, I firmly tapped him on the bottom with one hand while rubbing circles into his back with the other.

A tense few seconds passed like this, and then there was a sudden choking gasp by my ear, followed by a little cough, and then the baby was panting heavily, his little chest rising and falling rapidly with each breath.

A relieved sob broke from my chest, and I turned my head to press my lips gently against the blood-matted hair on top of the baby's little head. I pulled away after a moment and held the baby away from me, intent on examining him from head to toe to make sure there were no other problems _—_ and was immediately met with a surprise.

"Renesmee," I gasped, slightly shocked as I saw that I was, in fact, holding my _daughter_ and not a son.

 _Oh, thank you, Lord—I won't have to call her EJ for the rest of her life!_

Renesmee looked up at me in confusion as I unconsciously christened her with her name, her breath still coming in heavy pants as she took in all of her new surroundings. I gasped as her eyes made contact with mine, and I choked back another sob as Bella's chocolate orbs stared back at me in the face of our daughter.

She lifted a shaky, little hand to me, recognizing my voice, but she was still very confused and more than a little upset. I pulled her back up to my chest and rocked her a little bit, surprised that she hadn't started crying yet, though she still hadn't caught her breath again, so that might have been a reason why.

Suddenly, I felt one of Bella's weak hands brush my arm and then her hoarse voice whispering a plea for our child. "Let me… give her to me."

Quickly, I finished clamping off and cutting Renesmee's umbilical cord, and then I moved over, gently pressing the baby down into Bella's outstretched arms, both of us bringing the blood-covered baby girl to cuddle against her mother's naked chest. I didn't let go of Renesmee, knowing that Bella didn't have the strength to hold her on her own, but I wanted to give her the illusion anyway. I couldn't tear my eyes from the precious sight before me, even if it was marred by blood and pain.

"Renes… mee," Bella murmured, smiling lovingly down at our baby. "So… beautiful."

Renesmee gazed up at her mother in astonishment, her mind automatically connecting her mother's voice with her face, as she had done with me. Slowly, much to my amazement, a wide smile spread across the baby's perfect, little face, showing off a row of porcelain white baby teeth.

Beginning to calm down, my daughter turned to nuzzle her face into her mother's breast, and before I realized quite what had happened, Bella gasped in pain, her arms falling limply to her side. Automatically, I yanked the baby back to my chest, and she whimpered, panicked and confused again. She looked up at me and then down at her mother and then back at me, thinking about the last moment again, the tenor of her thoughts confused, wondering what she had done wrong.

"No, Renesmee," I murmured, pressing my lips down to her forehead. "We mustn't bite, love."

She didn't really understand what I was saying, her mind still too young to comprehend the meaning behind all of my words. She only knew that she had done something wrong, and it was upsetting her that she didn't understand and that everything was happening so fast.

I was wrenched from the moment with my daughter as I heard Bella's heart starting to struggle and then it stopped. Not even half a second passed before Jacob was on her, doing compressions against her chest so hard that I could hear the broken bones scraping against one another in tandem with his mental counting.

 _One. Two. Three. Four. Breathe. One. Two. Three. Four. Breathe._

"What are you waiting for?" he gasped breathlessly at me, his hands forcing Bella's heart to keep going. _One. Two. Three. Four. Breathe_.

"Take the baby," I begged desperately, holding Renesmee out for him to take so that I could begin the process. I didn't want her to be subjected to any more of this carnage than was absolutely necessary.

"Throw it out the window," he snarled at me, and I clutched my child back to my chest protectively, a growl rising in my throat.

"Give her to me," a sudden voice said from the doorway, and Jacob and I both threw a snarl at her at the same time.

"I've got it under control," Rosalie promised, her voice imploring as she stared almost hungrily at the baby in my arms, and in response, I only clutched Renesmee closer to me, glaring at my sister as she continued. "Give me the baby, Edward." _Are you planning on letting Bella die? You'll need your hands free_. "I'll take care of her until Bella…" She trailed off, keeping her thoughts carefully blank as she held her arms out for the baby.

I growled in frustration, but darted to my sister's side anyway, gently placing the baby into her outstretched arms. I leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to Renesmee's small nose, and then returned back to Bella's side without looking back to see Rosalie's triumphant smirk as she left to take the baby downstairs.

"Move your hands, Jacob," I said, grabbing the syringe with my venom in it from the equipment table where I had left it.

Jacob finally looked up at me, but did not stop his compressions against Bella's chest. "What's that?"

Impatient and annoyed that he was asking stupid questions at a time like this, I slapped his hands roughly out of the way, not even caring as I heard one of his fingers breaking under the force that I had exerted. In the same second, I steadily stabbed the needle down into my wife's chest and directly into her heart.

"My venom," I answered his question, watching in numb satisfaction as I pushed the plunger down, expelling the collection of venom directly to her heart. The organ gave a heavy jolt as it accepted the poison, and I removed the needle and threw it to the floor.

"Keep it moving," I demanded of Jacob, gesturing to Bella's chest. He stared at me for a second, noting the numb way in which I was speaking and working, and I think he thought that I was giving up, but the thoughts passed so quickly that I barely registered them before he was concentrating and doing compressions on her again.

But now was the time when I _had_ to try and detach myself from what I was doing, or I would end up losing myself to the despair and the thirst. I had to tread a fine line, allowing the venom to fill my mouth, but remaining detached enough to not allow myself to fall into temptation.

Bending down, I gently brushed my lips against my wife's ear before I kissed a delicate path down her neck, to the sensitive spot just below and behind her ear.

"I love you, my Bella," I murmured quietly to her. "Forever."

And then I bit.

I only allowed myself one swallow of her wondrous nectar, but that was enough to trigger my body's natural reaction to human blood, let alone _Bella's_ blood. Though I could control the baser side of my instincts, the aggressive and violent ones, I could not control the sexual effect that human blood had on my system.

It was a natural thing that happened. Blood and arousal were nearly one in the same when it came to a vampire's consumption of human blood, and it was often even half the desire of the hunt. Being vegetarians, our family wasn't privy to such instances of mixed blood and arousal anymore, because animal blood was not nearly as appealing as human blood. Sometimes, when hunting with a mate, things would escalate, but never simply because of the blood alone.

 _Human blood_ , however, was an entirely different story. My brothers had told me the week before my wedding that drinking human blood was better than sex, though not by much. I had hunted humans before, and so I knew of the arousal that happened when I tasted human blood, though I never acted upon it. I had also tasted Bella's blood before, and _—_ while it had been tainted with that bastard, James's venom _—_ it had been the most arousing, addicting flavor that I had ever had. I hadn't had the presence of mind at the time to realize that my body was pushing itself through climax after climax as I had feasted on her blood. Only later, at the hospital, when Carlisle had handed me a change of clothes, had I realized what had happened.

Of course, this time was no different, except that I wasn't so consumed by my wife's blood that I wasn't aware of my body's reaction. I felt my body shuddering and twitching, my breath hitching with each pulse of each consecutive orgasm.

Dimly, I was aware that Jacob was watching me with a sort of muted horror as I bit again into Bella's inner arm and then proceeded to lick the wound closed, a low moan in the back of my throat as I shuddered through another orgasm. I didn't know if he noticed what was happening to me or what I was doing to Bella, but I couldn't bring myself to care. I could be embarrassed later, when everything was calm again and Bella's transformation was safely under way.

I resisted the urge to let my eyes roll into the back of my head and forced myself to move on to biting her wrists and ankles. The front of my pants were quickly becoming soaked with blood and semen.

Jacob was starting to give up, his efforts to keep her heart pumping becoming slow and weak. When I could see past my orgasmic haze a little bit, I noticed his eyes darting from Bella's unconscious face to the door.

 _…gone. Nothing but a broken, bled-out corpse. She's not here anymore. Why should I bother with this stupid body anymore, when she's not here? She's dead. We're working on a corpse_.

The scant amount of blood on my tongue, the power of another orgasm, and the desire to fix Bella up as much as I could until the venom took over kept me from lashing out and breaking his neck. Instead, I leaned over my wife's broken form and carefully pressed my face back to her gaping stomach, licking each layer of skin closed to help along the healing process. This resulted in the biggest orgasm yet, due to the large amount of blood that I had no choice but to lap up in my quest to heal her broken body. I knew it was inappropriate, but I couldn't help but to rub myself against the edge of the table as I worked, helping each orgasm along. I wasn't reveling in it, but it was entirely instinctual. My mind was focused on saving my wife – my body wanted to be satisfied. Thankfully, I seemed to have control of myself from the waist up.

 _…don't belong here anymore. I want to leave. She's not here anymore. I don't feel her. I want to leave and never come back…_

"Go then," I snarled, slapping his hands out of the way again and curling my body protectively around Bella's. I picked up where he had left off and started pumping her heart, fast and furious.

 _It's dead. Her heart is dead. It won't ever pump again_.

Were those his thoughts… or mine?

"She's not dead," I growled, answering the thoughts no matter who they belonged to. "She's going to be fine."

He didn't answer me, turning to leave instead, his thoughts as sluggish as his feet.

"Bella," I gasped, my voice begging as I forced her heart to pump and stared at her ashen face. "Damn it, Bella! _Don't_ give up! You wanted this! You wanted to be a vampire, and I'm giving it to you, _so take it, God damn it_!"

I didn't receive so much as a twitch in response, the only movement in her body being the forced pumping of her heart.

" _Don't leave me!_ " I cried, pressing my bloody lips down on her still ones to breath for her. "What about your parents? Our family? What am I supposed to tell them, Bella? You can't go. Please, please…" I sobbed, my hands pushing down on her chest insistently. "What about _me_? I waited for you for so long, my Bella, my _mate_. Please don't leave me alone again. I can't, can't… damn it, Bella, _don't go_!"

Receiving no response from her, I turned my anguished pleas to higher powers, practically shouting at the ceiling. "Don't take her from me! Please, God, you gave her to me. You made me wait so long for her, and now I have her! Please don't take her from me when everything was just starting to be perfect. I know I've made mistakes. I'm sorry. Please don't take her—" I broke off with another sob, pressing my lips back to Bella's and forcing another breath down her throat.

I was wrenched from my desperate prayers by a small, mental voice calling out to me, and in a way, it was the answer that I had been looking for, even if not in the way I had been hoping.

There was a small cooing sound and then a series of sharp, loud images. First of a warm, suffocating darkness, and then there was a sudden light. When the sudden light faded, my face was reflected back at me, though it was obviously from a different perspective. There was a deep crimson liquid smeared across my face and dripping from my hair, though my expression was inexplicably soft and concerned as I gazed down at the owner of the memory. In the memory, I opened my mouth and spoke softly, my voice loving, but in a different way from when I spoke to Bella or any other member of my family. There was an undercurrent of pride and wonder in my voice in the memory.

 _Renesmee_.

The memory switched and then Bella was looking at me _—_ or, rather, the owner of the memory _—_ with a soft, tired smile on her face, her eyes bloodshot from screaming so hard, blood staining her lips and neck. In the memory, she opened her mouth to speak, and the same pride and wonder that had been in my voice was in hers, though it was accompanied by an odd tone of peace.

 _Renes…mee_.

Behind all of this, there was undercurrent of thought, a tenor that was wondering, curious, sad, happy, and several other conflicting emotions.

 _Where…? Momma, Daddy… want…_

My breath caught, and I tore my eyes from Bella's face to glance toward the door anxiously. Renesmee, though comfortable with being fed by Rosalie, was yearning for her parents, and the urge to go to her was nearly irresistible, especially when I noticed Jacob's thoughts becoming increasingly violent. I actually took an unconscious step toward the door without thinking about it, and then I froze, even my hands stopping their insistent pumping on Bella's chest, leaving the room uncomfortably silent.

Knowing what she would want me to do, a sob broke from my chest, and I leaned down to press my lips to my wife's.

Not to breathe for her, but to give her a goodbye kiss.

Lifting my hands, I gently lowered Bella's eyelids with my thumbs, bending down to whisper in her ear, "I'm sorry, my Bella. So, so sorry. Renesmee will be safe, and I'll be with you again soon, my love."

Pressing a last kiss to her forehead, I stood and backed away in the direction of the door, my eyes glued to my wife's still form, silent sobs shaking my shoulders violently.

Tearing my eyes away, I turned around and strode quickly out the door, lest I lose all sense of myself and go back to begging her to come back to me. She'd done her part _—_ she'd lived long enough to give me a healthy, beautiful daughter, and now it was my turn to protect Renesmee and make sure she was safe. I would make sure everything was in order before proceeding with joining Bella again. I would adore and protect my daughter for a few days, and make sure she knows that her mother and I loved her with everything we had, and then I would leave her with my family to keep safe.

Rosalie would get her wish to play Mommy, and Renesmee would be safe. The latter was all I cared about now.

With a new sense of determination, I was halfway down the stairs when several things happened at once.

The first thing I noticed was Jacob's thoughts suddenly going blank. For a moment, I thought that he might have phased already, but then Renesmee's thoughts were reflecting to me a vision of the boy. He was standing at the base of the stairs, staring back at her with a deer-in-headlights look, and then a wide smile spread across his face, and he looked happier than I had ever seen him. At the same time, they both recognized a strange inner warmth in themselves, and then Jacob's thoughts started up again.

 _She's mine_.

It only took a second for me to realize what had happened, and then I was seeing red.

" _No_!"

Just as the loud snarl ripped from my chest, there was another sound from the study, where Bella's body lay.

I only allowed myself to pause for a few seconds to listen before I was flying back down the rest of the stairs, ready to strangle Jacob with his own innards with a renewed sense of joy.

 _Thu-thu-thump, thump. Thump, thump. Thump, thump_ …


	4. Chapter Four: Family

**A/N:**

 ** _To My New Readers:_** This is a repost and finishing of one of my existing stories, which I had taken down a few years ago. I have decided to repost it and finish the tale, as it was originally a short story, anyway (one I really enjoyed, as well). The first four chapters were written quite some time ago, and I have since received a BFA in Creative Writing, so I hope you'll be able to spot the improvement in my writing starting in the fifth chapter.

 ** _To My Long Time Readers:_** Hi! So, um… yeah, I'm not dead! Woohoo! As I said above, I went to college, and have received a BFA in Creative Writing; in the meantime, I did not write much fan fiction at all, not for the lack of desire to do so, but simply because I had no time! I was also in the process of writing my own novel(s), of which I have completed two and am currently in the process of self-publication.

This chapter was originally written in 2011.

 **Beautiful Dreamer**

"Can I hold her?" Jacob asked, completely unaware of the enraged, emotionally exhausted, Vampire Daddy that was ready to kick his ass across the universe. He held his hands out to Rosalie, waiting expectantly for her to hand the baby over to him.

I was on him before Rosalie could even process his request.

" _Get away from her_!" I snarled, grabbing the unsuspecting Jacob by the neck and flinging him so hard into the front door that the wood splintered.

"Edward," he gaped up at me, rubbing the back of his head with his hand, wincing a little. Pulling his hand away, we all saw that it was covered in blood. I felt good about that. "What are you…?"

"You stay away from my daughter!" I shouted, grabbing him by the hair and hauling him to his feet, wrenching the front door open.

Leah and Seth were waiting anxiously on the front lawn, both of them utterly surprised to see me ready to literally throw Jacob out of the house. Automatically, Leah was snarling and growling at me, spewing all kinds of expletives at me in her head, but she shut up pretty quick when I snarled loudly at her, baring my teeth threateningly. She wouldn't have too much sympathy left for her Alpha once she realized what had happened.

"Of all the sick, twisted, _disgusting_ —"

"Hey, hey!" he cut me off, trying to struggle out of my grasp to no avail. "I never _meant_ to do this, Edward! It's freakin' involuntary. You think I would _choose_ this?"

"Oh, yes, Jake," I answered, my voice dripping with sarcasm as I dragged him down the steps and over to his pack, both of whom were watching us with wide, confused eyes. "Because who _chooses_ to be a pedophile, right?"

"A ped—you hypocrite!" Jacob shouted, finally wrenching himself free of my hold, albeit losing a hunk of hair in the process. "How fuckin' old are you, bloodsucker? And yet it's just dandy for you to go and fuck an eighteen-year-old girl—"

" _I did not fall in love with Bella when she was less than an hour old_!" I shouted furiously. To his credit and my delight, he did look pretty guilty as I said this.

"You know I don't think of her like that," he grumbled quietly, glaring up at me in arrogance.

"Yet," I amended him, and, again, he winced in guilt.

There was a beat of utter silence as the conversation was digested, and then, with a soft _pop_ – and for the second time in as many days – I was faced with a furious and very naked Leah.

Only this time her ire wasn't directed at me.

"You _imprinted_?" Leah screeched at her Alpha, shoving her face right up into his. "You _God damn imprinted_?! On that – that _thing_!"

" _Watch it_ ," Jacob and I snarled at her at the same time, glaring at each other when we realized that.

Taking a deep breath, Jacob leaned away from his enraged companion and closed his eyes as he began to speak. "Look – I didn't mean for this to happen. I had no control over it." He opened his eyes again and looked at me, his thoughts imploring me to understand. "But don't you think this explains a lot? Bella's need for me? _My_ need for _her_?" He watched me closely, waiting for any kind of reaction, but I kept my expression neutral. "It was never Bella at all – it was the baby. She's my soul mate, Edward."

I gritted my teeth together in annoyance. "If you have any concern for my sanity – or what's left of it – then you will refrain from using the word _mate_ in conjunction with your… _connection_ ," I spit the word out like it was leaving a bad taste in my mouth, "with my child."

Jacob ignored all that, his eyes taking on a hopeful gleam, "But you understand?"

"I…" I trailed off, raking a frustrated hand through my hair. It was all too much right now. I was mentally and emotionally exhausted, and I just wasn't ready to deal with this. Shaking my head, I abruptly turned around and started walking back toward the house, where Rosalie was waiting on the porch steps with the baby in her arms, watching the proceedings with wide, disgusted eyes. "I need to think."

"Edward, please—"

"Not now, Jake," I insisted, hoping that the use of his nickname would assure him that I didn't plan on kicking him out – yet. "I just need time to process all of this – when Bella wakes up, we'll discuss it."

There was a pause and then a harsh gasp from the boy, and I turned back to take in his shocked expression. "B-Bella's… okay?"

"No thanks to you," I couldn't help but snarl, glaring at him, and he looked away from me, guilt filling his thoughts.

"I'm…" he trailed off, swallowing thickly. "I'm sorry, Edward. I—"

"Not now," I repeated again, turning back to the house. "I can't do this now."

Thankfully, he didn't say anything more or attempt to follow me. Instead, I heard Leah start yelling at him again.

"Want me to castrate him?" Rosalie asked, as I came to stand next to her on the porch. She was glaring out at the bickering werewolves, unconsciously rocking back and forth as she fed a bottle to Renesmee. She seemed not to notice that the bottle was empty, and Renesmee – half asleep as she was – was sucking on air.

"No," I said, though the idea was tempting. I held my arms out for my daughter, and Rosalie automatically flinched away, taking the baby out of my reach as she realized what I wanted.

"I've got her," she assured me, stomping presumptuously back into the house, and I followed her, biting back another angered snarl. Now was _not_ the time to be testing my patience.

Jasper was waiting on us, no doubt, trying to diffuse as much tension as possible. When his eyes landed on the baby in Rosalie's arms, his eyes widened in wonder. _That's him_?

"Her," I corrected with a slight smile. "She's a girl. Renesmee."

He glanced at me and then looked back at the baby. He took a step forward, his arms starting to rise so he could touch or hold her – and, again, Rosalie flinched out of his reach, clutching the baby to her chest possessively, hissing at him in anger. Startled, he jerked back, and then looked over at me incredulously.

 _You're going to have a problem_.

"I know," I sighed.

Lifting my head in determination, I walked forward toward Rosalie, catching her by the shoulders when she attempted to move away from me. To my astonishment, she actually turned her head and snapped her teeth at me.

"I said _I've got her_ ," she growled, glaring up at me in fury.

"Have you?" I asked mildly, arching an eyebrow at her. "Then you've noticed that the bottle you've been feeding her has been empty for a few minutes already? And she'll most likely get a stomach ache later from all the air you've allowed her to suck down?"

Startled, Rosalie gasped and jerked the bottle out of Renesmee's mouth with more force than she should have. Renesmee, having been half-asleep, jerked awake, gasping and kicking her limbs out automatically. For a moment, her thoughts darkened as she remembered being inside of her mother, the cord that had been giving her life, tightening around her neck, slowly strangling her…

The baby began to fuss in panic, and taking advantage of Rosalie's startled state, I forced my arms into hers and under the baby. Taking Renesmee out of Rosalie's arms and bringing her up to cradle against my chest, she tucked her head into my neck, whimpering softly.

"Hush now, love," I murmured to her quietly, gently rubbing her back. "Everything's all right. Aunt Rose didn't mean to scare you."

"I did not—" Rosalie began to fume, but her words cut off as Jasper took a step forward and laid a gentle hand on her shoulder. Her temper died in reaction to his power, and she glared at him for a moment before turning back to me, her expression calm as she held out her arms. "You go tend to Bella; I'll look after the baby, Edward."

I shook my head and turned away from her, darting up the stairs before she had a chance to realize what I'd done. I heard the furious scream in her head and the snarl from her mouth, but she didn't follow. Jasper was holding her back and cooling her fury as much as he could to give me this time with my daughter.

 _I must not be as collected as I thought_ , I mused, gently hugging my child closer to my chest.

Entering Carlisle's office was like walking onto a murder scene. Blood drenched and stained the beige carpet into a sick brownish-crimson color, and the broken, naked girl on the metal table in the middle of the room was pale and limp, pools of congealing blood sticking to her body, face, and hair. The only improvement from how she looked after our daughter's horrific birth was that her stomach was now healed and flat again.

For a moment, I considered taking Renesmee back down to Jasper and Rosalie, not wanting her to see something like this, let alone her own mother. I dismissed the thought almost as soon as it entered my mind, my sanity barely hinging on my hold on my daughter. I feared that if I let her go, I would lose it, and that would do no good to her or her mother, both of whom needed me to be strong right now.

Alice, who had been hovering over Bella's broken form anxiously, her eyes closed in concentration as she searched the murky future, jerked her head up as I entered the room, her stare black and glassy.

Trying to see Bella's future now was better than when she was carrying the baby, but still murky. I could make out what I thought was the sound of laughter – masculine and feminine mixing together in perfect harmony – and the faded, murky image of someone who looked female jumping high into the air. She was weaving rapidly back and forth, and I recognized the motion as maybe jumping between tree limbs or rocks.

The vision ran black, and then there was nothing but Alice's concerned and angered thoughts. Blinking, I took in her gaze again, but she wasn't looking at me, but the baby in my arms. Or, rather, she was _glaring_ at the baby in my arms.

"Is that it?" Alice asked, a disgusted sneer on her face, and I felt my expression harden.

" _Her_ name is Renesmee," I said firmly, glaring back at my favorite sister, and clutching the baby a little closer to my chest, as though shielding her from her aunt's hateful glare. "She's your niece, Alice, not something to look at like she's a bug on the windshield."

Alice huffed angrily, her glare still livid. "She's nothing to me. Anything that can do _this_ —" she hissed angrily, gesturing to Bella. "—to its own mother, is a monster."

"She didn't mean to!" I replied, my chest feeling like it was being ripped apart. Renesmee whimpered in my arms, confused by the harshness in mine and Alice's voices. "She didn't do it on purpose, Alice. She's just a baby."

Alice shook her head, stubbornly, and marched passed me, toward the door. "Carlisle will be here in five minutes. Call me when you have that _thing_ away from Bella, and I'll try to see her again."

I suppressed an infuriated growl, and barely resisted the urge to slam the door behind her, closing it softly instead as I remembered the frightened and confused infant in my arms.

I stood awkwardly in the middle of the room for a moment, with Renesmee's face gently tucked away into my neck, careful to keep her gaze away from her mother. She tried to turn her head, knowing Bella was there, but I quietly reassured her with soft murmurs, rubbing her back gently until she gave up and laid her head back down onto my shoulder, letting out a little yawn into my ear.

Under the guise of wondering around the room in an attempt to lull the exhausted and stressed child to sleep – sleep! What a concept I never thought I would utter – I slowly made my way over to the medical cabinet, where several clean, white sheets were stacked on the third shelf.

Unconsciously, I had begun humming. It was something new, a bit like Bella's lullaby, but distinctly different at the same time. As I grabbed one of the sheets, and slowly made my way back to Bella's side, I realized that it was Renesmee's lullaby that I was humming, and I concentrated on the unconscious, hopeful undertone lacing through the notes emanating from my throat.

As I gently covered my wife's naked and blood-covered body with the sheet, Renesmee attempted to lift her head again, this time managing to catch a glimpse of the silent woman apparently asleep on the metal table.

 _M-Momma…?_

"Yes, love," I murmured quietly, turning to press a soft kiss to my daughter's forehead.

Despite looking fairly clean, there was still the distinct flavor of dried blood lingering on her skin. Frowning, I reached up to pull the little, white cap (where Rosalie had found it, I'll never know) from her head, but it stuck as I tried to tug on it, and Renesmee whimpered softly, turning her wide eyes back to me. Biting my lip against an infuriated growl, I realized that Rosalie had only given the baby a quick wipe down before stuffing the cap on her head and wrapping her up in a thin blanket. I'd have to give her a proper bath later, and, unfortunately, it looked like I would have to give her a bit of a haircut too; it was obvious that her blood-soaked hair had dried and stuck to the fabric of the cap. I could only hope that she wasn't too much vampire in that sense, and her hair would grow back quickly.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart," I crooned softly, stroking her cheek with my thumb. Answering her previous question, I continued on. "Yes, that's Momma."

Renesmee laid her head back down onto my shoulder, squirming around in her blanket until her arm was free, and I gasped as she laid the hot, little appendage against my chest, her fingers curling into the collar of my blood-spattered shirt.

 _Daddy._

Her thought was a firm declaration, not a question, and a strange warmth blossomed inside my chest, not so far from where her little hand was resting.

Before I had time to really process this new feeling, the door to the study flew open and banged harshly against the wall, causing Renesmee to jerk in panic. Automatically, I hissed in warning to the intruder, but it cut off in my throat as I turned to see Carlisle and Esme in the doorway. I was surprised that I hadn't heard them coming – mentally _or_ physically.

Esme's hands flew to cover her mouth as she gasped, her eyes wide as her gaze landed on the baby in my arms. She made to step forward, her arms starting to stretch out in my direction, but some basic part of me was still on the defensive, and a small warning growl slipped past my bared teeth. Carlisle threw his arm up to bar Esme's way, his gaze still on me, and he held up his other hand in a submissive gesture toward me, taking a cautious step forward.

"Edward," my father said patiently, his voice soft. "It's all right; everything's going to be all right. I just want to examine Bella."

I nodded slightly, tilting my head in Bella's direction, trying to force myself to relax my stance. It was difficult, especially when Esme eagerly rushed forward, tucking her arms around the baby and gently tugging her out of my arms. Reluctantly, I let her go, trying not to let it show how much it bothered me to have her out of my arms. I knew my mother only wanted to meet her new grandchild, and I was happy that she was so excited, but it made me uneasy to have both parts of my universe out of my arms – one lying vulnerable and in pain on a metal medical table, and the other being fussed over by her new grandmother.

Trying to act normal and not let it bother me, I turned toward Carlisle, who was in the process of taking Bella's vitals and carefully examining her body for any more damage.

"Her spine was broken," I spoke quickly and quietly, taking my wife's limp hand in mine. Carlisle looked up at me, his expression a mixture of surprise and horror. Cringing a little, I explained further, "during the birth."

"I'm sure he didn't mean to, Carlisle," Esme interjected quickly as Carlisle opened his mouth to speak. Worriedly, she started pacing closer to the door with the baby tucked tightly to her chest. I resisted the urge to rush to her side and take Renesmee back as she hurried on. "Really, he's just a baby. He couldn't have known, honey."

"She," I murmured softly, catching my father's eye for a moment before addressing them both. "She's a girl."

"What?" Esme gasped, startled. She stared at me in slight disbelief for a moment and then leaned the baby far enough away from her to unwrap the blanket she was wrapped in. She blinked in astonishment for a moment and then looked toward her mate, a glorious smile parting her graceful lips. "Oh, Carlisle! We have a granddaughter!"

Carlisle frowned, glancing between my wife's slowly healing, but obviously broken body, and to his own wife, radiant in her happiness as she held the tiny infant to her bosom. He didn't want to feel any negativity toward the baby, but he couldn't help being fearful what with the damage that had been done to Bella.

"Carlisle," I spoke softly, reaching my free hand across my mate's body to gently touch my father's shoulder. "It's fine. She's not aggressive or hostile in any way. The birth was just… difficult."

"Tell me what happened," he requested solemnly.

As I quietly described the horrific birth process to my father, I gently rubbed small circles into the back of Bella's limp hand with my thumb. Out of the corner of my eye, I kept tabs on Esme and the baby as she rocked back and forth, murmuring quietly to Renesmee, who – and if I hadn't been stressed to the point of breaking, it would have taken some effort not to laugh at her thoughts – had no idea what her grandmother was saying, nor even that Esme _was_ her grandmother. She just knew that some strange – albeit nice – lady was holding her and mumbling nonsense.

 _Daddy_ , Renesmee called out to me, twisting in her grandmother's arms uncomfortably. I stopped talking and immediately looked in her direction, frowning slightly as I noted the distinct confusion and distress in her thoughts. For a moment, I thought it had to do with finally being fed up with Esme, but then the latter gasped, and held the baby away from her in surprise.

"Uh-oh," Esme laughed slightly, tapping Renesmee's nose with her index finger. "Did someone have an accident?"

Carlisle blinked in surprise while I cringed slightly, lamenting the lack of diapers. Renesmee squirmed around uncomfortably, calling for me mentally, and I stepped away from my father and wife, holding out my arms to take the soiled baby from my mother. As Renesmee twisted around, her hand pushed against Esme's chin accidentally, and my mother gasped and would have dropped the baby had I not rushed forward and caught her.

"Esme!" I admonished, glaring at her harshly. Of all the people I would have to warn to be careful with the baby, Esme certainly hadn't been one of them. "You have to be careful! She's strong, but she's still a newborn."

"Oh, I – I'm sorry, Edward," Esme fretted, nervously fluttering her hands over Renesmee, afraid to touch her. She looked up at me, and said, "She was calling you. She knew you could understand her."

"Well, I've been answering her thoughts for the most part, and she's smart, so I'm sure she put two and two together," I explained, frowning slightly at Esme. "And, yes, she was reaching for me—"

"No," Esme interrupted, shaking her head. "She was _calling_ you. I – I _heard_ her – when her hand touched my face. I could see and hear her thoughts."

" _What_?" Carlisle gasped, immediately abandoning Bella's side and rushing over to mine, his hands lifting to hover over the baby in my arms, flitting over her form nervously. He glanced between me and Esme a few times before continuing. "Do you mean you think she projected her thoughts to you through touch?"

Esme nodded, a proud smile forming on her lips as she gazed back toward her husband before turning her eyes back to Renesmee, leaning down to croon sweetly to her while taking her little hand in her bigger one. "Show Grandpa what you did, sweetie."

I had to suppress a chuckle at Carlisle's reaction to being called "Grandpa," but he quickly shook it off, concentrating on the baby in my arms as Esme passed Renesmee's small hand into Carlisle's.

 _She's almost as warm as Jacob_ , he mused first as he registered her body temperature.

I groaned, cradling Renesmee in one arm while I pinched the bridge of my nose in frustration with my free hand. " _Please_ don't mention that mongrel in association with my child."

Carlisle blinked at me in confusion, his previous task momentarily forgotten. "Why? Has something happened? I noticed Leah laying into him on the way in, but I didn't pay attention to what it was about."

I shook my head tiredly. "You'll have to ask him. I can't even…" I sighed and shook my head again, not even able to finish my sentence.

Carlisle eyed me closely for a moment, before taking my word for it and nodding, his concentration going back to the baby. Slowly, almost as if he were afraid, he brought her small hand up to his face and gently pressed her palm into his cheek.

Carlisle gasped, his eyes wide, darting between me and Renesmee a few times before settling back on the baby, concentrating on her thoughts that he was apparently seeing. To me, it was just like anything else – I could hear Renesmee's thoughts as her own, not as if they were _through_ Carlisle's mind. If Esme hadn't noticed the ability, I probably never would have known. It was just like reading anybody else's thoughts, albeit Renesmee's were infinitely easier to detect, almost as if they were a part of my own.

Renesmee, for her part, didn't know what was going on, and she was starting to get upset. She was really only used to me, Bella, and Rosalie, so it was understandable that the new people in the room were a little frightening to her, even if they were her grandparents. She didn't even know what a grandparent was.

 _Wet, Daddy_ , she complained, fussing a little bit and reaching her free hand up to me, obviously deciding to ignore the other people in the room, whom she didn't know. She was a little curious as to why Carlisle was pressing her other hand to his face, but her "accident," as Esme had put it, was taking precedence in her mind. She gripped her fingers into the blood-soaked front of my t-shirt, tugging as she continued. _Wet. No want wet_.

"I know, love," I murmured, leaning down to press a kiss to her nose. "We'll take a bath in a bit. We have to tend to Momma some first, okay?"

"Fascinating," Carlisle breathed as he saw Renesmee's thoughts as she thought them at me, his eyes sparkling with the wonder of new discovery. He looked up at me, his expression a mix of awe and incredulity. "She knows words and meanings already?"

"Just a few," I amended him, paternal pride swelling in my chest. "Just simple things, for the most part, like Momma and Daddy," I chuckled and tapped a finger against my baby's small nose, "and wet." Looking back toward my father, I explained further. "She has trouble with whole sentences and the bigger words, though I think she'll learn quickly."

Esme was nearly bursting at the seams as she watched her husband slowly starting to fall in love with the little girl that was his granddaughter, a smug feeling swelling in her chest, though she tried to keep the "I told you so" at bay.

I laughed lightly, though it was slightly strained with guilt, deciding to end her silent suffering. "Yes, Esme; you were right, and we were wrong."

"Oh, no," Esme gasped, her expression suddenly horrified as she shook her head adamantly at me. "Edward, I – I didn't mean…"

"I know," I replied, smiling softly at her, hugging my baby closer to my chest.

She returned my smile, her gaze coming back to rest softly on her granddaughter, and then darting toward her daughter-in-law and frowning in concern. "She's so quiet."

Carlisle slowly pulled away from Renesmee, tucking her arm back into her blanket lovingly, before turning to stare at Bella again. "Hopefully, that means that the morphine is doing what we meant it to. Her heartbeat is strong, though, considering the circumstances – I'm not worried."


End file.
